


Soulbound

by Azureshadowmoon



Series: soulpedia [1]
Category: She-Ra and the Princesses of Power (2018)
Genre: Adora is my fav and it shows, Blood and Injury, Cuddling & Snuggling, Dorks in Love, F/F, Fluff and Angst, Kissing, Messy Writing, One Shot Collection, Sharing a Bed, She-Ra and the Princesses of Power (2018) Season 5 Spoilers, Sometimes She-Ra is a gun, Tumblr Prompt
Language: English
Status: Completed
Published: 2020-05-17
Updated: 2020-07-20
Packaged: 2021-03-03 01:08:38
Rating: Teen And Up Audiences
Warnings: Graphic Depictions Of Violence
Chapters: 32
Words: 71,314
Publisher: archiveofourown.org
Story URL: https://archiveofourown.org/works/24226360
Author URL: https://archiveofourown.org/users/Azureshadowmoon/pseuds/Azureshadowmoon
Summary: Girlfriends and caring for each other.
Relationships: Adora/Catra/Glimmer (She-Ra)
Series: soulpedia [1]
Series URL: https://archiveofourown.org/series/1823419
Comments: 352
Kudos: 909





	1. Chapter 1

.

.

It wasn't supposed to get out of hand. 

Adora kept that thought firmly rooted in her head as she hid behind a pillar. The killer droids on the planet- where was she? Dezlam? Izega? She lost track- were really living up to their name. But she was an eight foot tall walking powerhouse and this wasn't even the first time she'd fought killer robots. Entrapta could testify to that!

She winced as a blast rocked the pillar. No, it wasn't supposed to get out of hand because it was supposed to be  _ easy.  _ Two dozen droids. Save the village on Dezlam (Izega? She'd double check when she was back on Darla) and go back home to her girlfriends. No biggie. She didn't even have to  _ use  _ She-Ra for some of these missions. Going solo was about as easy as getting Glimmer an extra cake from the kitchen. It's practically her morning workout!

It wasn't  _ supposed  _ to get her injured. 

She winced and let her hand hover over her side. The metal shrapnel sticking out of her torso burned but it wasn't so bad if she just kept moving. And didn't touch it. Or think about it. She's glad her jacket is red. She really doesn't want to see how bad it actually is. 

That and she can't transform with metal in her skin. Apparently. 

"Don't worry girls." She throws her voice high in mockery of herself earlier that morning. "I'll be back before noon. Do you want anything while I'm out? Maybe some of my guts?"

A tinge of pain and a flash of nausea followed that. She regretted it, helplessly leaning on her only form of defense against a squadron of very weak robots. If Catra were here, this would be embarrassing. 

Or not, really. Catra would probably be going feral with worry and Glimmer scolding her through thin hysterics. She can already hear the  _ Adora let me help you  _ but can't tell who said it. Maybe Catra, with wide eyed desperation and claws digging into her shoulders. Maybe Glimmer, cradling her head with tears in her eyes. Maybe both.

The pillar groans warningly. A few blasts rock the ground and she almost loses her breakfast. Her free hand still clinging to the face of the pillar keeps her from eating dirt.  _ Home  _ never felt so far away in this moment. More than anything, she'd like to be back in her room-  _ their  _ room. She wouldn't have left the bed. She'd stay curled up under Catra's arms and enjoy the press of Glimmers body at her back. It'd be warm and comfortable and  _ safe.  _

Adora's breath shuddered.  _ Don't you dare cry.  _ She clenched her fist and glared over her shoulder. The bots were advancing slowly. Their weakness was their speed. Which, Adora quivered as another bout of pain wracked her, was her weakness as well. If only she'd taken someone with her. She should have called it a date, that would have got her girls out of bed. 

The pillar tilted and broke, sliding forward dangerously. Adora took a deep breath and pressed a hand to her wound and-  _ ouch ouch oh stars that burns.  _ She swallowed the whimpers and rolled away from the collapsing stone. A few blaster shots followed her to a broken building. Somehow, it was worse than the pillar. Half the roof had caved in and left it's entire flank exposed. A dozen beady robot eyes locked onto her. 

_ Uh oh. _

She scrambled underneath a table. The heat of blaster fire brushed her back. She couldn't stay here but she couldn't just leave the robots. The villagers had been evacuated but how long could they stay hidden before  _ killer _ robots came barreling upon them? The Catra in her head begged her to go back to the ship. The Glimmer side of her was suggesting getting aid from the villagers.

The She-Ra part of her  _ grinned.  _

"Okay." She closed her eyes. The table shook dangerously and probably only had seconds before she was swarmed. Her fingers prodded the wound. It hurt and her vision went grey when she wasn't gentle. She didn't like how sticky it felt. The urge to look was forced down. She absolutely could not distract herself here. 

The building shook. 

She was out of time. 

Adora bit her lip  _ hard.  _ Not giving her time to think, she reached and grabbed and  _ yanked.  _ For a brief horrifying moment, her vision went dark. A nightmare started. In it, she saw herself blown to shreds by fire and nothing left of herself but ash. Her girls would be so far away and worried. They'd reach out to Entrapta and track down Darla and somehow, someway they'd realise she was  _ gone.  _

"For the honor of Grayskull!"

And the nightmare was over. The pain washed away with warm white light. Adora exhaled with relief as the power, the magic,  _ She-Ra _ overwhelmed her. The table was gone and the building shuddered and fell around her. Casually, she brushed the rubble off her shoulder. The robots had stopped firing and were staring at her new form in bewilderment. 

"Alright." She cracked her neck. "Who's first?"

.

.

"Darla, should I get flowers? Or is that too much?"

"Unknown query."

"Yeah, I thought so too."

Adora sighed from the pilot seat. The euphoria of victory was starting to wear off. The village of Dezlam (she was right!) had insisted on celebrations and, pfft, she never turned down a party. She was completely weak to any form of festivities. There was food, there was decorations, there was dancing,  _ there was food. _

Adora chewed her candy- it was green and crunchy so it was candy- with a frown. She hadn't let the transformation go until she was safely aboard the ship. As always, she was completely healed. Not even a scratch! She was a little dizzy and tired but much better than bleeding out under a table. 

She glanced at her clothes. 

The problem was how  _ obvious  _ it was that she had been injured. Her jacket had discovered a new shade of red. Her left leg was entirely soaked. Her boot felt wet and sticky when she walked around. She was tempted to hide in a space suit, but that would fool no one. 

She sank in her chair sullenly. Etheria was five minutes away and getting closer. Would it be weird to walk out as She-Ra? No, Catra had the eyes of a hawk when it came to her transformation. She doesn't transform often nowadays. It'd be suspicious. 

She tilted her head up to the ceiling, "You wouldn't happen to have a washing machine in here would ya?"

"Unknown query."

"Figures."

"Suggestion: Nearby water sources recommend taking a detour."

Adora wrinkled her nose, "You mean go wash it in a river? That's kind of dramatic."

Darla cheerfully said, "Affirmative."

Adora winced. Right. No getting out of this. It wasn't long before Etheria came into view. The sight of it whole and safe and nothing  _ weird  _ happening while she was gone was enough to bring a sigh of relief from her. Still beautiful Etheria. 

"One minute until atmosphere breach."

"Thank you, Darla." Adora paused. "And uh, sorry about the chair. I'll clean it later."

"Affirmative."

Brightmoon hadn't changed. It was a wonder to realize she'd only been gone for three hours. It felt like days had passed. The ramp undocked from the ship. Adora stepped down and winced, raising her arm to shield her eyes from the sun. Space was dark. But the sun felt nice and, gosh she couldn't wait to find her bed and sleep for weeks.

She raises her head and spots two guards approaching. No. Sprinting?

_ Uh oh.  _

"Princess Adora!" Two pairs of hands are grabbing her shoulders. "Are you alright?!"

Her hands are flying up in surrender. It's not stopping them from dragging her to the castle, "Yes, yes I'm fine, I'm okay! It was just-"

They aren't listening. Which she can't really fault them for. If she was on duty when a princess came forward covered in blood, well. She'd be a little less gentle in shoving them towards the healers. 

"Guys, I'm fine." She says after ten minutes of being poked at. The healers huff at her. It's not the first time she's been dragged to the infirmary for hiding injuries. She-Ra's healing ability just makes it easier to walk it off. One of them slaps a bandaid on her cheek. Adora sheepishly smiles. 

"You lost quite a bit of blood." One of the healers takes her temperature. "Make sure you eat something before resting. And you  _ will  _ get some rest."

"Yes ma'am." She almost saluted but feels like that'd only get her more unnecessary bandaids. 

She knows when Glimmer appears. It's a displacement in the air, a  _ feeling  _ she's grown so used to that she looks at the spot even before the purple particles are shimmering there. Her girlfriend appears in a shower of stars and Adora only has maybe a second to appreciate Glimmer's insane bed head. And Catra's pajamas. Adora pouts. She missed out on fun things again. 

"Adora!"

Glimmer takes two steps towards her. It’s a ‘I’m about to tackle hug you’ and Adora is automatically opening her arms to accept it. Except Glimmer freezes on her third step and her eyes widen. Adora remembers herself and awkwardly lets her hands fall back into her lap. The med bed was starting to feel itchy. 

“Hey, Glim.” She starts, since Glimmer was just gaping at her. She looked as white as a sheet of paper. It made Adora queasy. “I just got back a few minutes ago.”

“A few . . .” Glimmer mouths a few more words and the worst thing happens. Adora recoils as tears start to form in the princess’s eyes. Glimmer makes a choked, awful noise before rushing forward and cupping Adora’s face. 

“What  _ happened? _ ”

“Oh, I was just- Well, you see-” She grimaces because she can still feel how sticky her jacket is. “I’ll explain everything Glim, don’t worry. I’m okay now.”

“Okay  _ now? _ ” Glimmer was looking her over, brows furrowed in concern. “You weren’t before? Adora, how bad was it? It looks bad.”

“I actually didn’t look.” She admits quietly. “I got scared.”

Glimmer whimpers. She looks like she wants to say more but shakes her head, eyes still watering and making Adora’s heart hurt. A crying Glimmer made her feel awful. It was amplified knowing she was the one who caused those tears. Carefully, she uses the only hand clean of blood to wipe them away. 

That, at least, brings a shadow of a smile to her princess’s face. 

“Okay.” Glimmer sniffles. “Let’s get you cleaned up.”

The healers see them off. It’s discomforting how much attention is on the pair as they move through the castle. Adora is almost too glad to see their room and almost runs Glimmer over to get inside. 

“I’m cleaning up.” She announces before anything else could happen. “Where’s Catra?”

She doesn’t get an answer and pauses at the bathroom door, tilting her head over her shoulder. Glimmer is still at the doorway and she’s just as pale as when she first saw Adora. There’s something haunted in her gaze that has Adora asking, “Glim? You okay?”

“Am I okay?” She repeats airily. “Adora, you’re- It’s all over you.”

Adora winces. A phantom memory of the pain pinching her side reminds her that it  _ had  _ been bad. She doesn’t know, probably won’t ever know how bad it actually was. She’s almost glad. Another part of her is frightened at the implications that on a simple, easy mission, she could have died. 

“I’m sorry.” It slips past her lips before she could stop it. It’s immediately the wrong thing to say, by the thunderous expression on Glimmer’s face.

“I’m getting Catra.” She says and then points to Adora. “Take a shower and don’t leave the room.” 

She’s gone before Adora can say ‘okay’. The shower doesn't help her anxiety. She watches the pink water drain blankly, unsure how to feel about it. Her skin felt itchy and the steam was making her head fuzzy. She carefully stepped out and grabbed her pajamas. Three hours ago she'd been in the same shower. She'd been content and warm, humming to herself and knowing her girlfriends were sleeping soundly outside the door. 

Adora peeked outside. No girlfriends. 

She sighs. At least she was wearing actual clothes now. The sight of her bed, sheets ruffled and pillows drooping onto the floor, ached something deep inside her. The weight of the mission settled on her and pressed her down to the bed.

Stars, did it feel good to be in bed again. She squirmed until she was underneath the covers, burying herself under four pillows and layers of blankets. The heat had her relaxing. She was home. She was safe. 

"She was  _ WHAT _ ?" 

A door harshly opening jolts Adora back to awareness. She blinks into the pink pillow confusedly. Half of her wonders if that had all been a dream. 

A pair of hands are pushing at her through the covers, "Adora, get up."

"Nnnmmmm." She pushed her head into the pillow. Too warm. Too tired. 

"Adora,  _ please,  _ let me see it."

"See what?" She's groggily pushing herself up. The arms are back and pushing her forward until she's sitting up and blinking into a familiar pair of eyes. 

"Catra." She makes grabby hands because a Catra shaped hug sounds nice but her girlfriend is batting them aside. Her hands pull up Adora's shirt and  _ that _ wakes Adora up.

"Wuh, Catra what are you-"

"Just be quiet." Catra's face pinches in a familiar way. Like she ate something sour but has to deal with it. "You used She-Ra."

"Had to."

She feels Catra's fingers brush along her ribs and shivers. Catra's other hand reaches up and gently touches the bandaid on her cheek. Adora almost forgot it was there, damp against her skin and cold. 

"She looks fine to me." Catra pulls back and looks over Adora's shoulder. Adora follows her gaze to see Glimmer leaving the bathroom. The thunder is gone from her expression. She just looks ill as she holds Adora's jacket out as if presenting evidence before a court. 

Catra stiffens. 

Glimmer nods her head grimly, "She was covered in it."

"Guys," Adora finds her voice but it's weak, "I'm right here. Talk to me."

"How bad?" Catra breathes and Adora switches from Glimmer back to the girlfriend in front of her and, oh,  _ oh no  _ Catra looked. Adora swallowed. She looked like they were in a tunnel heading towards the end of the world, with poison in her veins and promises on her lips. 

She looked like she almost lost something. 

"I don't know." She answered honestly, feeling small. "I didn't look. I got caught in a, a battle with some robots. Explosion. One of the metal bits got me right here."

"Got you?" Glimmer echoed. She's much closer and there's a dip in the bed besides them. "Did it…?"

"It didn't come out." Adora's mouth felt like cotton. "I had to force it."

Catra bristled. For a moment, Adora thinks she might push her off the bed. But Catra deflates, all the anger fizzling and her girlfriend's head falls into her shoulder. Adora finally wraps her arms around her, humming into her Catra Hug.

"Hey, I didn't get one yet." Glimmer is nudging them.

"You had your moment." Catra mutters.

Adora whispers, "I just took a shower Catra. She couldn't."

Catra makes a defeated noise. One of her arms disappears followed by a yelp and another body being crushed into their hug. Glimmer huff's into Adora's arm and Adora can feel Catra grinning into her neck. Adora herself is too delighted to care about the manhandling. She takes them both and buries her nose into Glimmer's hair. 

"It's good to be home." She murmurs. 

"No more solo missions." Glimmer says. Adora wants to protest but the phantom pinch is there. She keeps her mouth shut. 

Catra's voice is a low hum in her ear, her short wild hair tickling Adora's neck, "No missions ever."

Okay. That was mean. 

"Group missions." Adora tries for a compromise. "Date missions?"

No one says anything but she sees Catra's ears perk and she huff's a smile. All three are cuddling on top of the bed. Glimmer is settling into her side with a content noise. Catra is in her arms, tail flicking back and forth lazily. The tension had eased. 

"Okay." Glimmer says. "Date missions."

"Ohhh." Adora can hear the smile in Catra's voice. "Can I plan the first one?"

"I call dibs on second and third."

Adora blinks, "But, I'm third?"

"You didn't call dibs." Glimmer shrugs. "Not my problem."

Catra mumbles, "Fourth."

"Hey! Guys, c'mon give at least-"

"Fifth."

"Glimmer! Okay, then I call dibs on-"

"Sixth. You're really bad at this Adora."

Adora pouts. Her girlfriends are snickering at her and she guesses she deserves it for making them worry. She can handle a little teasing. Or. Maybe she can dish it out. 

Glimmer opens her mouth and Adora can hear  _ seventh  _ in her head but that's never said, because Adora's lips are there instead. She's delighted at the little surprised noise Glimmer makes and then melts. Glimmer kisses are like stardust and sugar and fairly addicting. It's all soft words and gentle thoughts.

And then Catra says, "Seventh."

Adora snaps her head up, breaking the kiss indignantly, "Catra!"

"You can't kiss us both." She points out smugly. 

Glimmer can barely say 'eighth' passed her giggling and it makes Adora flustered. Catra's looking too satisfied for her liking and she's pushing the other girl onto the bed. Catra yelps and then bursts into hysterical laughter as Adora rakes her hands up Catra's sides. The tickling has the cat slapping the bed desperately through tears. 

"Glim!" Catra cries through laughter. "Go on without me!"

Not missing a beat, and surprisingly in character, Glimmer mournfully chants, "Ninth! Tenth! Eleventh!"

"You two are the worst!"

Adora let's Catra go, but Catra is throwing her arms around her neck. She's breathless and flushed and delighted as she drags Adora down into a kiss. It's a sight that has Adora less grumpy about being teased. Catra kisses burn her lips, with  _ don't leave me  _ and  _ I'm not letting go  _ written in every moment. It tastes like fire and longing. 

Catra laughs again and it breaks the kiss. Adora,defeated, let's her head fall into her girlfriend's shoulder and groans. Glimmer's hand is carding through her hair and she feels a little better about her predicament. 

"You can have the twelfth one Adora." Glimmer offers. 

"It's the only one you're getting." Catra adds cheerfully. 

"Or maybe I'll suffocate you both and take them all."

They both squeal as two pillows  _ thwak  _ them in the face. The retaliation ends in a brutal pillow fight that makes the bed even more of a mess. They miss lunch, but only for a little while before a few guards are interrupting their childish war to force feed Adora. 

It's later, after they've eaten and pillows aren't weapons, that she curls back into the comfort of her bed and  _ sighs _ . Exhaustion is pulling her down and she feels like she's sinking. Glimmer is moving into her arms and snuggling her. Catra winds her arms around her waist and Adora, blissfully, almost falls asleep. 

Except a fourth body is pouncing on the bed and Catra shrieks, "Melog! Playtime is over! No, you can't lay there!"

There being Adora's legs. She figures she doesn't need those anymore and cuddles further into her girlfriend's arms. Catra grumbles some and she can hear Melog making a laughing noise. 

She falls asleep smiling. 


	2. Chapter 2

.

.

Catra dreams of colors. 

Pink, to her amusement, is a common color. It’s in flowers that tickle her nose. Butterflies flicker and blink in her vision in a familiar way. Sparkles dance just out of reach. There’s a teasing laugh in her head and it’s saying _oh almost got me_ and Catra can’t stop smiling. It’s soft dreams that leave a sweet taste on her lips. She wakes up and it’s nice to know some dreams come true. 

Yellow is another frequent. It’s just not _seen_ but it makes itself known. It’s there in the sun kissing her skin, the honeybees caressing her ears, the shine of gold under her claws. It’s less something she sees and more something she feels. And sometimes a hand is carding through her hair and she wakes up to Adora’s smile. It’s nice. 

And sometimes.

Sometimes she dreams of green. 

There’s no comfort in the color. It’s not like the grass under her toes or the candy Adora will bring her. It’s not Perfuma’s flowers and it’s definitely not Double Trouble. Because those are comfortable dreams and this? This is a void. 

She dreams of a vast, empty green void. She can’t do anything here. She can’t move, can’t feel her favorite yellow or see her nice pink. It’s just green and her own voice, her own wretched voice saying _hello Adora._

She usually wakes up at this point. It’ll be startling and awful but Adora would be there to bring her back, _I promise,_ and Glimmer would sleepily wrap her in a hug. It’d ground her and she’d let herself relax. She was safe. 

Except the dream doesn’t end. The green goes on and on until it breaks apart into a single black slit and he says _Every cog in the machine has a purpose. Even you, little sister._ She feels sick. She feels her body moving but all she sees is green and she hates it. Hates it, hates it, hates it-

“Catra, please!”

Adora.

“Catra, listen to me! You have to fight it!” 

Memories are creeping back. Catra, drowning in sickly green colors and Adora’s hand grasping hers and pulling her back with every word, every promise. But that’s not happening here. She can’t find Adora, _where is Adora?_

A cry of pain. Adora. Adora is in pain, that’s not supposed to happen. She didn’t hurt Adora, Adora saved her and they escaped that’s what happened, that’s what-

“Catra!” Her voice is weaker. “I know you’re in there! Can you hear me? I’m not giving up on you!”

Catra struggles. Her limbs don’t move, her head feels like cotton, and not even her voice can make itself known. Panic swells in her chest and she squirms and thrashes but nothing works. Adora makes another noise. It’s weaker but it’s in _pain_ oh no, please no, not like this-

“Catra?”

Catra almost yells with relief. It’s Glimmer and- Glimmer’s here? She’s there, the brightest pink spot in the sea of green. The princess looks confused, blinking sleepily around her. A part of Catra wants to laugh at her bed head and pajamas. She looks so out of place it’s ridiculous. 

Glimmer blinks again, more awake, “What? What is this place?”

Catra opens her mouth and it _burns._ Any words fizzle and die and she’s curling in on herself in pain. She can feel him in her head, fingers stretching through her memories and a grin in her thoughts. It’s not hers, this body is hers but it’s _not hers._

“Hold on! Catra, hold on!”

Arms are wrapping around her. It’s like a spell breaking and she can breath. The voice in her head is gone and it’s just her. Adora’s wails of pain fade away and the green sea takes on a sweet, pink hue. She blinks dazedly at it. She feels she’s wounded but can’t feel anything at all. She looks up at Glimmer who’s looking down at her.

Catra blinks. When had her head ended up in her lap? Not that she was complaining. This was nice. Much nicer than nightmare green. She’d take pink in a heartbeat. Glimmer’s hand is in her hair and scratching just right. It’s soothing. The painful thoughts feel like they’re being buried. 

“Feel better?” Glimmer asks, her sleepy gaze managing to be confused and concerned at once. “I don’t know what just happened. Were you in pain?”

“No.” Catra coughs. “This is a dream.”

“I know. You still get hurt in dreams, Catra.”

That has her frowning. Experimentally, she reaches up and pinches Glimmer’s arm. The princess scowls and bats her hand away, “What was that for?”

“You’re real.”

“Duh. Did you think I was part of that nightmare?”

Catra’s head throbs painfully and she clenches her eyes shut. Glimmer’s lap is comfortable and she turns her head into her girlfriend's stomach. Trying to think around problems like this always gave her headaches. Princess business. Adora was better at this magic stuff. 

“No.” Catra admits softly. “You’re usually not here.”

“That was a memory, wasn’t it? When you were…?”

“Yeah. I don’t want to talk about it.”

Glimmer continues petting her head. Her other hand finds one of hers and threads their fingers together. She’s even humming a soft little tune. Catra feels like she’s floating and it’s wonderful. She dares to peek her eyes open. The swirling colors of pink now have white twinkling dots. Shooting stars leave Catra breathless and a pressure in her eyes. 

Glimmer smiles at her, “Hey, you. You didn’t tell me how you’re feeling.”

“Terrible.” She breathes raggedly, trying to hold it back, but the traitorous tears are blurring her vision. “I want to wake up but I don’t want to leave.”

Glimmer blushes, “I can wake you up.”

“Do it.”

Glimmer’s hand moves through her hair to press on her forehead. She’s leaning down and Catra can see the stars in her eyes, the shine of pink butterflies and twilight skies. Glimmer’s lips are like sparks. It crackles like a supernova and flutters like a bird's wings. Catra can feel her heart and it sings. 

She blinks awake and Glimmer is still kissing her. 

She recognizes the ceiling through Glimmer’s hair. The curtains of the bed are blue and gold and it’s too dark to see the tear she made with her claws a month ago. She can feel the blankets over them. She can feel Glimmer in her arms, her eyes closed and happy noises against her lips. 

“I love you.” She doesn’t say because she doesn’t need to, doesn’t have to as she wraps her arms tightly around her princess and sighs into the kiss. It’s her girls, her stupid princesses, who step into danger for her no matter what. Glimmer didn’t even think. She’d saved her. 

“Hey, hey.” Glimmer breaks the kiss and Catra realizes she’s crying. “Easy. I’m here.”

She muffles her sniffles into Glimmer’s collar. It works, sort of. Glimmer rubs her back and whispers soothing things into her hair and it feels nice. 

Melog makes a noise at the foot of the bed. She recognizes the question but can’t answer her. Her cat makes a mournful noise and she feels the heavy weight crawling up to nuzzle her cheek. Glimmer giggles and she hears a playful sneeze. 

“Melog.” Catra complains. 

The cat sneezes again and this time Catra smiles. Glimmer is giggling too loudly and she feels the body against her back stir. There’s a sleepy murmur from Adora and a head of blonde is popping up. 

“Wazzit?” Adora yawns. “What happened?”

“Catra had a nightmare.”

_Traitor,_ she wants to tell Glimmer. She doesn’t say anything and just buries her head deeper into Glimmer’s arms. Let’s pink become all she sees. No green. 

“Oh.” Adora says, a soft understanding under tired words, “Do you wanna talk about it, Catra?”

“No.”

Adora makes a _mmph_ noise and she feels the blonde flop back onto the bed. An arm is curling around Catra’s waist. Being surrounded should scare her, she thinks. It’s only making her more comfortable. Glimmer is still petting her hair, daringly moving her finger close to her ears and it feels _really_ good. 

Catra says, “It was Horde Prime.”

“Ah.” Adora grumbles. “I killed him.”

“Thanks.”

Glimmer snorts, “That’s why it was green there. I heard Adora’s voice though. What...um, if you’re okay with me asking, what happened back then?”

Catra sighs. She’s tempted to ignore the question. Melog is a nice weight on top of her and she can feel sleep beckoning her back. Her eyelids were heavy. It’s Adora who answers, sounding about as exhausted as she felt. 

“It’s when Catra got mind controlled by Prime.” Adora pauses and Catra can hear the hamster falling off it’s wheel. “Wait. Glimmer, were you in Catra’s head?”

“Not on purpose.” Glimmer sounds guilty. “I was asleep and ended up in Catra’s dream. I don’t know how.”

“It’s fine.” Catra tightens her hold on Glimmer. “I needed you.”

She feels her girl melt and a kiss pressed to her head. She soaks it up and sighs, allowing her tail to twine itself around Adora’s leg. She can feel the blonde half asleep against her back, her breath brushing Catra’s neck. Alive. 

“That’s neat.” Adora finally mumbles. “Nice work.”

“Sure thing.” Glimmer’s amused. “Anything else, boss?”

“Sleep.” Adora yawns. “No thinking. Sleep.”

Catra likes that. She likes that enough to press goodnight kisses to Glimmer’s throat. She curls around her girlfriend, ignoring the few flustered noises she makes, and settles in for sleep. Except she closes her eyes and the mere idea of sleeping is suddenly very, very scary. It’s embarrassing. It’s just a dream. She’d had them before. She was safe. 

Adora sighs, loud and tired, “I said stop thinking.”

“Oh, sorry we’re not all empty headed.” Catra snaps and then winces. “Guh, I mean. Sorry , I just-”  
  


“I get it.” Adora’s voice is that soft understanding that makes Catra melt. It’s the same tone she used in _I’ll never leave you_ and _I promise_ and _I love you._ It makes Catra weak. “We’re not going anywhere, Catra. You’re staying with us.”

Glimmer huffs into her hair, “Mine.”

And that. That has heat crawling up her neck and all over her face. Her heart is screaming in her chest. Gentle confessions like that always get her. If Netossa wanted to add anything to her infamous princess weakness chart, she’d add ‘ affection’ under Catra. It was certainly doing something to her right now. 

“Stop being sappy.” She complains, at least to hold on to that dignity. “I’m too tired for this.”

“Then sleep.” Glimmer kisses her forehead. “I’ll stay up until you do?”

“Promise?” She winces at how vulnerable she sounds. 

But Glimmer is smiling, “Promise.”

As if on cue, Adora snores. It’s so ridiculous Catra laughs. Melog mimics it and that only makes Glimmer laugh. Which, in turn, wakes up Adora again who almost smacks her head into Catra. 

“Euh.” The blonde drowsily slaps her pillow. “Get sleep. Both of you.”

Catra playfully says, “Yes boss.”

Glimmer is snickering, “Sure thing boss.”

Melog meows and all it does is send the two into hysterics all over again. They get pillows to the face for it, but Adora’s is grinning at them. They end up awake for a while longer, talking comfortably about nonsensical things. At some point a fort was made between pillows and curtains. The only light was the blue glow of Melog in the corner. 

“Better?” Adora mumbles into her shoulder. She’s barely conscious. It’s cute. 

“Better.” Catra confirms. 

Glimmer gives a sleepy, delighted kiss to the corner of her mouth. She lets the taste of it follow her into her dreams. It’s dreams of blazing shooting stars and dozing bumblebees. It’s a good dream. 


	3. Chapter 3

.

.

The first thing Catra registers when she wakes up is  _ ouch.  _

The second thing is Melog. 

Her cat had wiggled her way in between her and Adora during the night. It wasn’t uncommon, to her annoyance, but Melog had done it in such a way that one of her paws was pushing on Catra’s chest. It was making it hard to breath. She grumpily batted it away. 

The feeling did not go away. She took a deep breath and it  _ burned.  _ She ended up coughing, a vile taste running down her throat and she gagged. In a panic, she thumped her hand to her chest. It helped, it gave her the air she needed, but her nose just wasn’t working. No matter how hard she dared to breath, it didn’t. Well.  _ Breath _ . 

“What’s tha?” And she’d woken up Glimmer. 

“Nothin.” 

Catra paused. Her voice was  _ not  _ supposed to sound like that. It felt dry. She experimentally ran her tongue over her lips. Cracked. Her tongue felt dry too. 

Glimmer was raising her head from her nest of pillows. Catra could barely see her spectacular bed head in the dark. And the frown aimed at her. 

"Catra?" The princess rubbed her eyes. "You don't sound good."

"I'm fine." She grabbed her throat. No, that's definitely not how her voice is. It's not hoarse. She sounds like she screamed and didn't stop till it hurt. "I don't know."

Glimmer's hand snakes out of the covers to press over her forehead. It's cold, her brain registers. It feels so nice on her skin. She leans into her girlfriend's palm. Catra almost whines when Glimmer takes it back. 

"You're burning up." Glimmer is moving out of the covers. She stumbles a little on the blankets. In a flash of pink she's on Adora's side of the bed. "Adora, wake up."

The blonde mumbled. 

"Adora. Wake up. Catra is sick,  _ wake up. _ "

"Huh?" The princess of power sits up dizzily. "I'm up. I'm up. What's going on?"

The attention was starting to embarrass her. Catra frowned, rubbing her throat. She didn't feel that bad. Her head hurt but nothing serious. 

"I'm fine, I think." 

Adora tilts her head in her direction. Blue eyes slowly blink at her. She must see  _ something  _ because she's much more awake when she says, "Glimmer get the lights."

"Right."

A flash of pink and the whole room lights up-  _ oh stars bright way too bright ouch.  _ Catra hisses and covers her head with a pillow. She groped around for the covers but ended up finding Adora's hand. She felt a kiss pressed to her knuckles. 

"Catra, take the pillow off." 

Catra grumbles, "At once, your highness."

Adora doesn't swing anything back at her which only makes her more uneasy. She lets the pillow go and turns her head to her girlfriend. Adora leans in, bright eyes swimming with concern. 

"You look awful." Adora murmurs, reaching out and ghosting her thumb over Catra's cheek. It's a cool touch and it's fleeting. Annoyed, Catra latches onto Adora's wrist and brings the hand back where it should be. The palm on her cheek is an oasis in a hot desert. Ice cream on a humid day. It's so nice she purrs.

Adora whispers, "Oh that's bad."

“What?” Glimmer is back and with a washcloth in her hand. Catra’s ear flicks to her footsteps as she stops in front of her. “Woah. Is that new?”

“Not really.” Adora mumbled. “Catra doesn’t do that often and, um. Well she’s usually not so calm about it.”

“Uh oh.”

“Yeah. What’s that for?”

Without replying, the cloth is draped over Catra’s forehead and oh  _ oh  _ it’s so blissfully cold. She’s got Adora’s hand on her cheek and a strip of cloth over her head that's soothing her headache  _ just right.  _ She exhales peacefully. She can ignore the way her throat feels. This felt too good to pass up.

“I’m trapped.”

“Adora, you can just take your hand back. It’s what the cloth was for.”

She can  _ hear  _ Adora’s pout, “No, I really can’t.”

Glimmer sighs, “Alright, alright. I’ll make the trip to the healers. Make sure she doesn’t do anything crazy.”

“She’s not going anywhere, Glim.”

“Good.”

Magic tickles Catra’s nose. The absence of Glimmer almost has her waking up. But Adora’s hand starts caressing around her jaw and just by her ear and gliding over her cheek and it’s so, so nice. She melts and curls around her girlfriend’s knee’s. Adora huffs. 

“How’re you feeling?” The fingers pause and Catra mournfully whines. “Okay, okay. I’ll keep doing that if you answer me.”

“Hot.” Catra complains. “It’s way too hot.”

“How’s the headache?”

That makes her pause, “You knew?”

“The lights.”

Oh right. The coldness has her more awake and Adora’s voice is prying her from the fuzziness. She tentatively prods the cloth and winces at the sting behind her temples. It’s not as bad as when she woke up. She tries to breathe through her nose and it sounds like an engine sputtering. 

“This sucks.” She groans. Melog sneezes by her elbow. “And gross.”

“You’re sick. It's okay to be gross.”

Catra buries her head into Adora’s lap, “Don’t be sappy. I’m going to get snot on you.”

“That’s fine with me.” Adora’s voice is warm. It’s doing things to Catra’s head that’s not part of the headache. Her blonde is still gently touching her, always slow and cautious. Her fingers sometimes run through Catra’s hair. It’s soothing. 

“You’re good at this.” She mumbles drowsily. Her voice sounds worse when she’s barely awake. 

Adora snickers, “Thanks, I practiced on Melog.”

She opens her eyes enough to shoot her a glare. Melog is coming to her defense and licking Adora’s cheek. Adora’s weak to animals in the same way it has her weak to food. She giggles and snorts when Melog presses her nose to her face. The sight of it has something light and feathery dancing in Catra’s chest. She really wants to kiss her. 

Except Adora’s hand is pushing against her mouth, “No, I’m not getting sick.”

“That’s not fair.”

“Deal with it.” Adora grins and still rewards her by pressing her lips to Catra’s hair. It’s not what she wanted, but she’ll take it. It drags her down further into a state of sleeping but awake enough to feel. She can hear Adora’s soft humming and the sound of birds outside their window. She can hear the fizzle in the air when Glimmer returns. 

“I brought treats!” The princess announces, “And yucky medicine! Get up, Catra.”

Catra whines. No, she doesn't want to leave Adora’s lap. It’s too comfortable. 

“Adora, help me out.”

Adora’s leaning down and she feels her lips against her ear, “Are you hungry? She brought food.”

Catra snorts in amusement, “That works on  _ you _ , dummy.”

She’s sitting up anyway. Something smells good and she’s only a little baffled that she can smell at all. It gives her the energy to lift herself up and look at Glimmer. Her girlfriend looks too proud to be standing there with a bowl of  _ something  _ delightful in one hand and a small brown bag in the other. Childishly, Catra points towards the bowl.

“That. I want that.”

“That’s a shame.” Glimmer shakes her head. “Because you can’t have this without taking your medicine first. Healers orders.”   
  
  


Catra scowls, “It’s not like they’ll know.”

Adora is laughing. Her girlfriend is laughing in her ear and it’s cute but she knows Adora’s laughing  _ at  _ her so she elbows her. It doesn’t affect the princess of power at all. 

Glimmer sits in front of her with a smile, “Well  _ we  _ want you to get better, so healers orders are our orders.”

Catra wants to roll her eyes. She’s halfway through the motion when her head protests and she winces. Reluctantly, she accepts the medicine. It tastes awful. She sticks her tongue out and shivers. But she can already feel the aches disappearing. She experimentally breathes through her nose and feels better about the change. It’s still bad, but she can at least get some air through it now. 

“Soup time.” Glimmer nudges her. “Good girlfriends get soup.”

“I’m not a dog.”

“Yeah, you’re a-”

“Finish that sentence, sparkles, and I’m sneezing on you.”

They’re giggling at her. Catra gives them a sour look as she’s handed the bowl. The warmth of it under her fingers and the intensifying smell distracts her from the teasing. A spoon _tinks_ against the rim and she's snatching it up. She's hungry. Does she even need a spoon?

"You are going to use the spoon." Glimmer is poking her nose. "If you eat too much you'll get sick."

"I'm already sick."

"You know what I mean."

Her stomach protests the first bite. It tastes so good but settles uneasily. She's afraid to take a second bite. Adora brushes her bangs out of her face. 

"Can you take another bite?" Her blonde peers up at her, eyes shining like moons. "Please?"

_ That's not fair,  _ she wants to say. She takes a bite instead. It's easier to swallow. Her stomach growls for more but it makes her nauseated. She feels too warm. 

"Water." She gasps. 

Glimmer's hands are on her shoulders. A glass of something cold is placed in her grasp. She almost downs the whole thing right there. It's Glimmer's firm grip that keeps her from overdoing it. She takes careful sips of water. Her stomach complains at the ice in her gut. She ignores it. 

"Was that better?" Glimmer whispers. She's close, close enough her breath fans across Catra's face. A different craving has her following Glimmer's voice, resting her head on her collar. A hand cards itself through her hair. It sends tingles down her spine. 

"Mmhm." She mumbles. 

"Get some rest." Adora's kissing her shoulder. "You need it."

"Stay?" 

She can hear Adora exhale shakily. The lips on her shoulder linger for a moment longer. Adora's hand twines itself with hers. It's a promise in how firmly Adora grips it. 

"I'll be here when you wake up." She says. 

Glimmer adds, "I don't mind sleeping some more."

Catra snorts, "You would."

"What's  _ that  _ supposed to-"

"Shhhh." Adora is throwing blankets over them. It's too warm and Catra groans. "No talking. Only sleep."

"Adora." Catra kicks her leg weakly. It meets Adora's hip but Adora only laughs at her like she's cute. It makes Catra's face hot. "Stop it."

"Nope." 

Glimmer laughs. It's all Catra remembers, in between hushed whispers and gentle touches. She expects fevered dreams. Instead, she awakes to sunlight glinting over her eyelids. She feels better. She can breath without wheezing. Her girlfriends are still tucked at her sides. 

Glimmer's hair is tussled and she's drooling a little into their pillow. Adora's sprawled out starfish, her arm draped across the both of them. The weight of it on her back has Catra smiling. 

A few more minutes couldn't hurt, she decides. 


	4. Chapter 4

.

.

It was her birthday. 

Well. Her 'birthday'. It was actually the day she deserted from the Horde. It's the day Glimmer and Bow took her to a festival and introduced her to something wonderful. It’s the start of She-Ra, the start of something bigger than crashing in the Whispering Woods. She imagines if force captain in training Adora could see her now, she’d have a heart attack. 

Ideally, she wanted to spend it with her girls. A good birthday would be slow walks through Brightmoon gardens. Eating cake late into the night and getting into trouble with the guards for sneaking off. A little pranking sounded fun. Maybe even a midnight flight on Darla. Star-gazing,  _ ohhh  _ that’s definitely what she wants to do. 

And then Glimmer said, “Nope.”

Adora blinks. That...wasn’t too hefty of a request was it? She wasn’t asking too much, was she? Glimmer was still staring her down, arms crossed and looking every bit like the royalty she was. 

“It’s going to be a surprise.” Glimmer announced. “Meaning you can’t be in the castle while we get it ready.”

“It?” Adora echoes, confused. “What’s it?”

Catra is already pushing her towards the door, “You’re gonna find out later. We’ll come get you when it’s done, okay? Cool. Now scram.”

“But-!”

The door to the castle slammed shut behind her. Adora gaped at it, feeling a little hurt and left out. A surprise?  _ It?  _ She was so confused. The guards were at least looking at her sympathetically. And she wasn’t exactly alone. 

Bow solemnly patted her shoulder, “They’ve been planning this all week.”

“What’s  _ this?”  _ Adora asked, feeling a bit frustrated. “I don’t like not being in the loop.”

“Well, I’m not in the loop either.” He smiled. “Catra didn’t trust me.”

Adora drops her head into her hands. 

“But, luckily I’ve made plans.” He starts pushing her away from the castle. “It’s time for some birthday exploring. You’re going to love it.”

She frowns over her shoulder at the doors. A part of her wants Catra to open them again, smirking at her and saying  _ you really believed that oh my god  _ and let her back in. Her ideal birthday is starting to look a little wonky with this curve ball. 

“Adora, c’mon.” Bow is nudging her and doing his best to cheer her up. “It’s a surprise. They want it to be perfect.”

That softens her up. She tears her eyes away from Brightmoon and sighs. Right. She could do this. 

“Where are we going?”

Bow’s grin widens, “On a birthday adventure.”

.

.

Adora wants to punch something.

Preferably Seahawk. 

The tavern they were at was alive with singing and dancing. It lifted Adora’s spirits and, more than once, she was beside herself with laughter. A stranger would offer their arm and she’d accept another dance then another. She breathlessly found a chair to rest in and clapped along to the music. 

It was Seahawk’s idea, to her surprise. Bow had been at a loss on where to go when Seahawk had sprung from the bushes like a frenzied rabbit. He’d practically dragged the two of them out to celebrate. 

“I thought you were hanging out with Mermista?” She’d asked.

“I’ve been sentenced to the couch, unfortunately.” He solemnly twirled his mustache. “But no matter! A good shanty shall lift any somber spirits today! Happy birthday, Adora!”

“Happy birthday!” The crowd cheers. 

She blushed and stammered shyly. The attention was embarrassing but she couldn’t stop the pleased grin on her face. This made up for the strange morning. All they had to do was wait for the word and she’d be back in Brightmoon. Nothing could go wrong. 

And then a few sailors pointed at Seahawk and yelled, “That’s him! That’s the one who blew up our ship!”

Seahawk bowed, “Gentlemen! It’s so good to see you again, I was worried I’d have to go find you!”

“Rip off his mustache!”

Seahawk squealed, all bravado leaving him as he hid behind Adora. Adora blinked at the pirates in front of her, a little bewildered but mostly amused. They didn’t look cowed so they must not know who she was. This would be fun.

“Hiding behind little girls won’t save you!” One of the sailors yelled. 

“Get him!”

“Heh.” Adora rolled her shoulder. “ _ Little  _ girl? I’m sorry, but could you repeat that?”

Bow appeared at her shoulder, looking just as smug as she felt, "I think they might be in over their head."

She grins and flexes her fingers. The words are on her lips. The magic is thrumming in the air. All of it snaps away the minute Bow drops to the ground bonelessly. Adora gapes. 

“Bow?!”

“Get her!”

She’s too distracted. Bow is on the ground, is that a dart in the back of his head? She hears Seahawk crash to the ground behind her and she barely has time to register  _ I’m next  _ before her vision is tilting sideways. Darkness swallows her whole. 

And then the sun is blinding her. She squints, feeling tears in her eyes and not having the strength to move her arms. Arms that are stuck behind her. Was she floating? No. She’s dangling. 

She looks down. 

“ _ Heeee-”  _ Adora snaps her eyes closed, frantically trying to erase the image of dangling  _ hundreds of feet in the air  _ from her head. Her arms are tied behind her, there’s a gag in her mouth, and she’s definitely hanging off the side of a ship. A sky ship of some kind. It’s really cool and would be awesome to fly, if the noticeable scorch marks and fire damage wasn’t a huge indicator who’d captured her. 

Them, she corrects. From the rope she’s dangling on, she spots Bow and Seahawk tied to the mast. Both are looking at her worriedly. Bow mouths ‘okay?’ and Adora nods. The gag in her mouth tasted awful. 

“Alright, listen up!” One of the sailor’s yelled. “You’ve got one option, Seahawk. Pay us back for all you did or the little girl drops.”

“Why, I never-” Seahawk began indignantly. He yelped when one of them kicked the mast. 

“Pay up or she drops!”

Bow struggled against his ropes, “This is way out of line! We’ll pay you back, just put her down!”

“Wrong choice of words, boy.”

The rope holding her up jostles sharply. Adora’s breath catches and ice settles in her chest.  _ Don’t look down  _ is a frantic mantra in her head. She makes eye contact with Bow and he looks terrified. She tries to smile. She doesn’t know if it works around the gag. 

“Say goodbye!”

“Yeah.” A familiar voice drawls. “I don’t think so.”

One of the sailors goes flying. Adora tilts her head over her shoulder, delighted at the sight of Swift Wind throwing a vicious kick at their captors. Catra is on his back, grinning with all fangs. 

“Catra!” Bow cries happily. 

“Take care of the pirates.” She hears her girlfriend say. “I’m getting Adora down.”

“Adventure!”   
  


“And will you stop that!”

The beat of Swift Wind’s wings is a familiar thrum in her heart. Their connection is a drum in her veins and she can’t stop grinning at them.  _ My hero  _ she says but it’s muffled by the gag. From the way Catra’s ear twitches, she definitely heard it. 

“Hold still.” Her girlfriend smirks at her. “Man, you look like a dork.”

“Shut up.” She says but it sounds like  _ haunop.  _

“I’ll have you know Adora.” Swift Wind is talking and she can see Catra’s smirk drop. “That all Catra did on the way here was talk about how worried she was. How  _ concerned  _ she- Ow! Did you just kick me?!”   
  


Catra says, “Must be your imagination.”

Adora, hanging hundreds of feet in the air, giggles. She feels too warm to be afraid anymore.  _ Catra’s here  _ is something nice and it makes her heart feel relieved. It’d be okay. 

Or at least, it was going okay. There’s an awful  _ snap  _ that has Adora blinking. At first, she doesn’t think she’s heard it. But Catra’s face is turning purple and it’s another second before she realizes she’s  _ falling.  _ Oh. 

_ Oh.  _

“Adora!” The scream follows her and she’s going down, oh stars she’s falling too fast. Think, think, gotta transform. How? She can’t speak. But she doesn’t need to speak to transform. How does she do that? Transform? Is that something she can do? Where is up and where is down,  _ oh stars she’s going to be sick.  _

Her head felt too fuzzy. The magic should be there but she’s too distracted, can’t concentrate-  _ needs  _ to concentrate. On what? She can feel Swift Wind falling with her. Every beat of her heart echoes in the beat of his wings. Catra’s voice is on the air but she can’t hear it with the wind in her ears. 

A shine of pink in her peripheral. She tries to follow it but she’s twisting in the air, can’t see. She can feel magic but it’s not hers. 

“Adora!” That's Glimmer, definitely Glimmer, whos’ playing some panicked version of teleport hopscotch to try and catch her. “Adora, hold on!”

_ To what?!  _ She thinks.  _ My breakfast?! _

Hands swipe for her, just out of reach. A frustrated yell. Adora struggles against her ropes, tries to bite her way around the gag. Nothing is working. 

“Glim! Catch her!” 

“Adora, I’ve got you!” 

Adora’s eyes widen as arms wrap themselves tightly around her. Her vision is cut off by shimmering pink and purples. The feeling of plummeting to the ground stops and she’s there, held suspended in Glimmer’s arms. Glimmer who’s flying. It hadn’t been Swift Wind’s wings after all. 

It’d been Glimmer’s. 

“What…” Adora breathes, the question muffled behind cloth. She’s too dazzled to speak. Glimmer could  _ fly. _

Glimmer doesn’t seem to care about that. The princess is out of breath and crying as she draws Adora in for a tight hug. Adora squirms, wishing her arms were free. Glimmer wasn’t letting her go though, and she hears a tearful hiccup in her ear. 

Guiltily, Adora mumbles, “Sorry.”

Glimmer sniffles, “Don’t apologize. I’m going to kill Seahawk.”

A brush of wind and Swift Wind appears, a pale looking Catra nearly falling off in her effort to grab them. She hooks one hand into Glimmer’s wing and yanks them onto the horse's back. It’s a testament to how worried she was that Glimmer doesn’t do anything about it. 

“You were right in front of me.” Catra is caging her in her arms and is nice enough to use her claws on the ropes. The freedom of actually being able to move her arms has her sighing with relief. She takes out her own gag and works her jaw. It’s stiff. 

“For the record,” She starts and hates the way her voice cracks, “it was all Seahawks fault.”

Glimmer snorts. 

Catra still looks like she’s seen a ghost, her fingers running over Adora’s face. It makes Adora’s heart hurt and she’s leaning forward to press a kiss to the corner of her mouth. She gets a shaky exhale and an irritated, “Don’t make me do that again.”

“I’ll do my best.” She rests her head on Catra’s shoulder. “I think I’m done with my birthday. I just want to go home.”

She feels Glimmer’s head land on her back, the brilliant pink wings blanketing them, “We didn’t get the surprise ready in time. I’m sorry, Adora.”

“Next year.” She mumbles. “I’m just glad you’re here."

“That’s my line.” Catra’s says into her hair. It’s nice, being surrounded by her girls, and the ice in her chest chips away. She’s safe and not plummeting from a pirate ship. She lets that comfort her as Swift Wind glides through the clouds towards home. 

"When did you get wings, Glim?"

"Just now."

"It's beautiful." It's funny how she can _hear_ Glimmer blushing and laughs. "Thank you. Both of you. I love you so much."

"Yeah, well." Catra huffs. "Happy lame birthday, Adora."

Later, Mermista will drag Seahawk to deliver a ‘sorry I ruined your birthday’ present and she’ll get to spend the evening star gazing with her girlfriends. It’s not perfect, but it’s enough. Bow nudged her jokingly before the night was over. 

“Hey, at least you have a funny birthday story to tell now.” He’d said.

“About the time I got kidnapped by pirates?” She smiles. “No one will believe that.”


	5. Chapter 5

.

. 

Glimmer wasn’t sure what to think about this. 

Exploring was a nice pastime for the three of them. Just a quick word off to Entrapta that they were borrowing Darla and they’d be off. Catra would lounge on the window the whole ride, content to watch the stars while Melog curled up at her feet. Adora would pilot, as always, and get real talkative about all the planets they passed. Which one had ruins on them, which ones were inhabited, which ones had been destroyed. For Glimmer, it’s a road trip. 

I mean. Once you’ve done a dozen of them, you’ve done them all. But it was a Date Mission and she was obligated to go. Not that they were forcing her. But she was just a teensy bit jealous of them having fun without her. 

Not that she’d ever admit that. Ever. 

“How much longer?” She asks. 

Adora hums, “Not far. It’s last known location is nearby.”

“Are you sure?”

“Positive, Glim. I trust the coordinates Entrapta gave us.” 

An unknown planet. An undiscovered location. The adventure and mystery of finding new places. She couldn’t hide her eager hop in her step when she paced the cog pit. It reminded her of when the squad first set out. Nowadays, the most exciting thing would be the extra cake Adora swipes her from the kitchen. 

“Wonder if there’s water…” Catra mumbles. 

Glimmer snickers, remembering their last disastrous date mission, “Sorry. I thought an all water planet would be fun to explore!”

“Sure, if you brought  _ Mermista.”  _

Adora gives a helpless sigh, “Guys, c’mon, we’re almost there.”

Glimmer can’t stop smiling. It’s fun and she can see Catra’s reflection in the window grinning back at her. This was going to be  _ really  _ fun. 

“That’s weird.”

Glimmer glances at Adora. She’s frowning at something on the screen in front of her.

“What’s up?”

“Oh, it’s just- well. Just a weird feeling.”

“Normal weird or princess weird?” Catra asks. Glimmer can’t find it in herself to be annoyed. Adora is still making that face. 

“Adora?”

The blonde shakes her head, “Sorry, uh. There’s civilization on it.” 

“Is that what Darla tells you?”

“No. I don’t know.”

Catra mutters, “Great. Princess weird.” 

“It’s nothing.” Adora is saying over them. “Let’s go say hi.”

The planet they land on is so eerily similar to Etheria. Glimmer almost feels like she’d turn her head and see Brightmoon. The forests are vast over the planet. It’s easy enough to fit Darla into a safe spot. Stepping out into the open air is like home, singing in her lungs and magic in her veins. 

Wait. Magic. 

“Adora-” Glimmer starts. 

“Yeah. That’s what I felt.”

Catra is sulking besides them, “Care to fill me in?”

“There’s magic here.” Glimmer frowns at the trees around them. “But how? Magic is gone from the universe. Isn’t it?”

Adora is hesitating, unsure, “Maybe it got away?”

That’s even weirder. It doesn’t settle right with Glimmer. She shares a glance with Catra and is comforted to know she’s not the only one uneasy by this spontaneous magic. Adora walks forward. 

“C’mon girls. This way.”

The village they come across isn’t big, but it’s much more advanced than any of the villages back home. There’s floating disks around every home, crystals along rooftops, constellations drawn into the roads. The very ground itself is vibrating under the magic the village possesses. It sets off little alarm bells in Glimmer’s head. 

“Hey, I don’t think we should-”

“Woah.” Adora already has a disk in her hands and turns it over excitedly. “What is this stuff? It says ‘cup holder’.”

Catra is looking over her shoulder, “No it doesn’t.”

“Yeah it does. Right here.”

“Adora, there’s nothing there.”

The alarm bells are screaming now. Glimmer has enough time to smack the device out of Adora’s hand before a stranger rounds the corner. Glimmer’s first instinct is to fire a spell, maybe something that’ll put it to sleep and they can slip away. Catra tenses beside her and she’s relieved to know she has backup. She gets a good look at the stranger and any plans of attack fizzle up. 

The girl in front of her blinks. “Oh, I’m sorry. I’m looking for my- oh, you found it. Thank you.”

“Uh.” Adora says, confusedly handing over the cup holder. “You’re welcome.”

Glimmer gapes at the two. Standing right beside each other, the resemblance is uncanny. The woman is taller, older of course, and her hair goes down to her waist. But her hair is honey blonde and she has shining blue eyes. She hears Catra squeak beside her. 

Adora says, “Sorry. We didn’t know what it was.”

The woman smiles politely, “That’s alright. You’re off worlders, aren’t you? Welcome to Eternia.” 

Adora freezes. 

Glimmer can’t tell if it’s her or Catra who wheezes like they’re dying of asphyxiation. Judging by the alarmed look the woman shoots them, both of them must look blue in the face. Glimmer pounds her chest to get her lungs working again. 

“Sorry, um, I think I misheard you.” Glimmer laughs nervously. “Did you say Eternia?”

“Why, yes.” The woman tilts her head. “That’s where you are.”

“That’s-” Adora’s face does a few things before she’s breaking out into a tentative smile, “That’s incredible.”

“Is it?” The First One, an actual living breathing First One, smiles in confusion. “How far from home are you, little ones?”

“Uh, well, we’re from-”

Catra says, “Dezlam. We’re from Dezlam.”

The First one hums, “I haven’t heard of that planet. You’re more than welcome here, on behalf of Eternia’s court.”

Glimmer barely feels like she can breath, “Eternia’s what?”

“Oh. Forgive me.” The woman bows her head. “Here on Eternia, the nobility lead us. I’m a part of one such family.”

Adora looks like she’s about to come apart, eyes wider than moons. Catra is acting quicker then her and slipping an arm around their girlfriends shoulders.

“Hey, thanks for the introduction.” Catra smiles. “Appreciate it. We’re just passing through though.”

“But Catra-”

Catra whispers something sharply and Adora is frowning. Glimmer doesn’t have to imagine what was said and tacks on a polite smile, “We’ll be on our way.”

The First One inclines her head, “Of course. Enjoy your stay, little ones. Should you require any help, we are more than willing to offer it.”

_ Sure you are.  _ Glimmer almost says but reels the sarcasm in, plasters the fake smile on her face, and hauls her girlfriends out of there. Well, more Adora then Catra. Catra is practically scrambling to get away from the village. 

Once a safe distance away, Glimmer shouts, “Eternia?!”

“Isn’t it great!” Adora is turning to them with one of her heart aching smiles. “First Ones, actual First Ones! Alive!”

“Adora, you’re missing the point.”

Adora’s smile dims, “What do you mean?”

Glimmer runs a hand down her face, “Etheria. The Heart? She-Ra? This whole war? Aren’t you a little upset?”

“I’m upset.” Catra snaps, “I’d like to go home. Now.”

“But-”

“Two to one, Adora.” Glimmer raises her eyebrow. She can still feel her heart hammering in her chest. This place seemed so peaceful. It felt like home. Now it felt like a trap. “Adora, we can’t stay.”

Adora is pouting, “Why not? I want to know a little more.”

“Why?” Catra grumbles.   
  


“I was born here.”

They both go quiet. It was easy, Glimmer lamented, so easy to forget Adora was a First One herself. Even now, whenever Adora reads something they can’t, it stops her short. It’s hard to imagine dorky, sunshine Adora as an ancient being. 

“Please?” Adora is leaning forward. “I promise we’ll leave after this. I just want to poke around. Please?”

Catra must have noticed her wavering will because she said, “I don’t like this, Glim.”

“I don’t like it either.” She pinches the bridge of her nose. Adora was still wearing that helpless expression, like she’d broken the She-Ra sword all over again. It hurt to look at. “Okay. Fine. One trip and we’re gone, got it?”

“Got it.” Adora grinned. 

Glimmer made sure to share a look with Catra as they left. Solidarity in defeat was all they had. 

.

.

She took it back. Solidarity in horror was all they had. 

She can feel Catra pale beside her, her girlfriend practically clinging to her arm. Melog is making a bunch of fussy noises at their feet. Glimmer herself felt like she was under cold water. Adora had managed to drag them to a busier village, with more people, more  _ important  _ people. 

Catra hisses, “Why are the nobles blonde?”

Glimmer doesn’t know what to say. Adora apparently does, as she stands amongst a crowd of curious bystanders. She’s doing what she does best and talking herself to death. The rapid fire questions are answered cautiously and Adora takes every bit of information like she’s foaming at the mouth. 

“I, um, I don’t.” Glimmer swallows anxiously. “I don’t think she knows.”

“Does she?” Catra is squinting, almost hiding behind Glimmer’s shoulder. “She’s getting along better with the blondes. The ones wearing the fancy robes. See?”

“I see.”

Melog grumbles. Glimmer idly pets her head, glad another member was a part of team Uncomfortable With This. Adora was either letting it all slide off her or was aware and soaking it in. She wonders if she’d look the same if she just found her long lost family. 

Catra whispers, “I haven’t seen her smile like that in a while.”

It’s true, Glimmer notes tiredly. Adora has her charming smile on, the one she wears for special occasions. The one for birthdays and festivals and defeating Horde Prime. It’s a beautiful smile and it’s currently surrounded by First Ones. 

Glimmer crosses her arms, “I don’t like this.”

“Ditto.” 

Glimmer opens her mouth to speak but pauses. Adora’s expression changes. For a moment, the conversation her blonde is having looks awkward and forced. Adora has a flustered look on her face. She says something and the crowd goes quiet. 

Catra is perking up, “What’s going on?”

“I don’t know.” Glimmer straightens, ready to go intervene. “Let’s go-”

“For the honor of Grayskull!”

“That  _ idiot! _ ” Catra shrieks, bolting forward. Melog yowls and is on her tail. Glimmer can barely get her feet to respond, gaping at the shining white light of She-Ra. First Ones know Adora is She-Ra. First Ones who made She-Ra a  _ weapon.  _

It’s time to leave. Right now. 

“Catra, get her out of there!”

“Adora!” Catra slides across the ground to She-Ra’s form. “Let’s go!”

Adora doesn't move. It pulls Glimmer up short, slows the panicked thoughts. The crowd hasn’t moved, hasn’t even blinked. They’re staring at Adora as if she hadn’t just transformed into an eight foot tall princess. Catra stops too, equally bewildered. 

“What the heck is wrong with them?” 

Adora murmurs, “They’re not real.”

“What?” Glimmer teleports next to her girlfriend. The First Ones look real, they’re even blinking and talking to each other. “They’re right in front of you, Adora.”

“I asked them about She-Ra.” Adora’s face is drawn downwards into something sad and wistful. “They told me Mara is She-Ra.”

“But Mara-”

Adora nods. 

Catra is the one who steps forward, lip curling and lashing her foot out into a kick. Glimmer winces, expecting the First One she aimed it at to topple down. But Catra’s foot sails harmlessly through them. They aren’t real. 

“More holograms.” Glimmer sighs, the tension deflating from her in an instant. “For the love of- do they always have to do this?”

Adora doesn’t say anything. The white light of She-Ra fades and her girlfriend is there, shoulders slumped. It pulls at Glimmer’s heartstrings. 

“Adora, I’m so sorry.”

“It’s fine.” Adora glances up and Glimmer follows her gaze. It’s the blonde First One from before, chatting with another one of her people. The sheer longing in Adora’s gaze has Glimmer pulling her into a hug. 

“It’s not fine. It got your hopes up. I’m so, so sorry.”

“Hey, Glim, it’s okay.” Adora sighs into her hair. “They’re long gone.”

Catra’s arms are pulling them into a hug. Glimmer can feel Melog nuzzling into Adora’s hip and that finally breaks something in her blonde. Adora sniffles and buries her head in Catra’s shoulder. 

“I really wanted it to be real.” 

“I know.” Catrua murmurs. “Let’s go home, Adora.”

The walk back to Darla is solemn. They haven’t quite untangled themselves. Adora’s arms are still looped with theirs in an almost vice grip. It has Glimmer’s heart fluttering and aching all at once. They leave Eternia behind them, or at least the echo of it. Adora watches it go from the cog pit. 

“Glimmer?” Adora speaks up. “Catra?”

They glance at each other and then at her. 

“I’m sorry.” She’s wiping her eyes with her sleeve. “I wasn’t being fair. You guys, you guys are my family too. I wouldn’t replace you for anything.”

“Oh gross.” Catra says but Glimmer can hear her voice crack. “You’re getting sappy.”

“It’s adorable.” Glimmer admits, feeling her own tears. Adora smiles then, like sun rays behind storm clouds and draws them in for a tight hug. The fluttering of Glimmer’s heart doesn’t stop, not even when they’re back on Etheria. 

“I love you two.” Adora whispers. “More than weird princess stuff.”

“Oh good.” Catra breathes. “I’m glad that’s where the bar is.”

“Catra.”

“You know I love you.” 

Glimmer giggles, “We both love you, Adora.”

Adora smiles. 


	6. Chapter 6

.

.

Adora wasn’t a stranger to anxiety. 

Despite her best efforts, it had been a constant shoulder companion. In those times during the war especially. She wholeheartedly blames it for many of the times she couldn’t transform. She blames it for those vulnerable moments, moments she stood alone in the dark surrounded by her own fire. She felt it in every battle, every conversation, every step she took. It followed her to bed where images of her friends blaming her, the Horde winning, Catra and Glimmer lost, She-Ra  _ gone- _

She shuddered, “Can you not have those thoughts tonight? That’d be great.”

The night sky doesn’t answer her. She huffs, leaning further onto the railing of the balcony. The stone under her fingers felt cool. Her pajamas weren’t the best against the nighttime chill. A part of her wanted to go back to bed, curl up with her girls, forget about her random bout of insomnia. 

_ If only.  _ She dropped her head onto the stone dejectedly. 

It had been a fun day too! The morning had started so sweetly. She’d woken up in Catra’s arms, her head tucked under her girlfriends chin and gentle kisses pressed to her cheek. She remembers laughing because being woken up by kisses was the best thing ever. It’d woken up Glimmer, who’d been on Catra’s other side and had rewarded Adora with a pillow to her face. Which got Melog going and they all woke up in various states of laughing till they cried. 

Breakfast was eggs and some apple bacon that Glimmer adored. Her girlfriend always had an enchanted expression when one of her more favorite foods were on the menu. Adora could hardly pay attention to her own meal as she looked fondly at the other girl. It’d been Catra who poked her with her fork saying  _ Open up Adora  _ and she’d been too flustered to do anything else. 

They’d gone flying on Swift Wind and on a long walk around the castle with Melog. Catra had wanted to burn some energy so they’d sparred in the gardens for a bit, which kind of escalated and ended up with one of the hedges getting set on fire. Thankfully King Micah was nearby and they didn’t really have to face the consequences of it. Glimmer still gave them exasperated looks when they came back. 

And then dinner happened. Adora could have floated through the ceiling and touched the moon with how cute it was. Glimmer had gotten a small table set up in their room with blankets and pillows piled around it like a birds nest. It was a mix of Catra’s favorite seafood and Adora’s sweet tooth. It was touching and she couldn’t stop clinging to her girlfriend, showering her in compliments. 

“Adora!” Glimmer was giggling under how red her face was. “You’re embarrassing me, stop it.”

“No, keep going.” Catra smiled, one of the softer ones she saved when they were all alone and other people weren’t watching her. “She’s cute when she’s shy.”

“I am not shy!”

Adora nuzzles the back of her neck and sings, “Cute shy princess, what does your heart desire?”

“Let me go!”

“Oh no, I’m going deaf. I can’t hear you.” She presses her nose closer and snickers when Glimmer squeals. 

“Adora!” 

Catra decides to come to the princess's rescue and winds her arms around Adora’s waist. It startles the blonde. She blinks and she’s being thrown into a pile of pillows. Her own face lights itself on fire when Catra leans over her, her hands on either side of Adora’s head. She’s smiling smugly. 

“Gotcha.” Her girlfriend says. 

Adora exhales, “You got me.” 

Catra’s smile dims, changes to something else, something reserved for promises and whispered oaths. It’s soft and vulnerable and has Adora struggling to breath past her racing heart. Her girlfriend leans down and she’s fighting her elbows underneath her, to push herself up and meet the kiss-

A pillow smacks them in the face. 

“Glim!” Adora protests and laughs as another takes Catra to the floor. She’s too busy laughing to care. “We’ve been sabotaged.”

“I will not lose!” Glimmer shouts, grinning as a few more pillows float up around her. The pink magic shimmers briefly before Adora finds herself buried under half a dozen of them. She gives a dramatic groan. Catra shrieks, jumping out of the way of the first three. 

“You’ll never take me alive!” She shouts, the fourth one smacking her right in the face.

“Too bad!” Glimmer waves her fingers menacingly, “Bow before your princess!”

“Never!”

Adora crosses her arms over her pillows, smiling fondly at her girls. They dance around each other playfully. Glimmer is laughing too hard to really get Catra. Catra is showing off by ducking and twirling around magic. Pink lights dance around her as she shoots finger guns back at the princess. 

  
“Got to try better than that!”

“When I get my hands on you-!”

Adora is in love. She’s hopelessly, desperately in love and it  _ aches.  _ She lays down for bed and waits until she hears her girls sleep, waits for Catra’s ears to stop twitching. Only then does she get up and sneak her way out to the balcony. Only then does she drop her head into her arms and  _ sigh.  _

And here she was sulking. She raps her knuckles against her head. She’s irritated with herself. A wonderful day and she was ruining it by feeling this way. It’s feelings like  _ devotion  _ and  _ not enough  _ that has her even more upset. She’s afraid it won’t ever be enough. 

“Stop.” She hisses, rubbing her eyes tiredly. “Stop being this way.”

“Hey.”

Adora let’s her head  _ thunk  _ onto the railing. It might be rude to ignore Catra like that, she realizes. She can’t find the energy to pick her head back up so mumbles a vague greeting in her direction. There’s footsteps behind her and arms wrapping around her waist. 

“I can hear you thinking from inside. What gives?”

“I’m being dumb.” Adora says to her arms. “I’ll be back inside in a moment.”

Catra doesn’t say anything to that. It’s just them, Adora realizes, the ache in her heart twisting. Catra and Adora, the two who were raised in the Horde. Catra and Adora, who fought each other tooth and nail. Catra and Adora, who saved the world. 

Catra’s voice is soft in her ear, “Bad night?”

“It’s getting worse.” Adora admits, rubbing her temples. The sting of a headache is starting up. It’s beginning to crawl up her nerves. “I’m thinking too much.”

“What can I do?” 

“Just.” She searches for the right words,  _ what do you want Adora,  _ “just stay, please.”

Catra murmurs, “Okay.”

The stars were weird to adjust to. When they first appeared, Adora didn’t like them. The sky was too covered by Horde Prime ships to appreciate them. Now though, when it was just her and her girlfriend, she can see them. She can see every fraction of herself reflected in them. She sees the mistakes she made and, ugh, she can’t believe an idiot like her got to be She-Ra.

“Adora?”

“What?” She winces at the sharpness in her voice, “Sorry, I’m-”

“Yeah.” Catra exhales. “I can feel how tense you are. Talk to me.”

The words were there, just barely there, and she chewed on them. Catra waited patiently beside her, arms caging Adora in with a silent  _ you’re not going anywhere.  _ It releases some of the ache. Her chest feels a bit lighter when she says, “Do you think things would be different if I never found that sword?”

“ _ The  _ sword?” Catra asks, “Definitely.”

“Would we be-”

“No.” Her girlfriend sounds tired. “No, we wouldn’t be friends Adora.”

That raises her curiosity. She turns her head and Catra is giving her a fond, if somewhat exasperated look. 

“You would have become force captain.” Catra murmurs. “You would have gotten your own team. It still would have happened, cause I’m just. I’m messed up like that.”

“Catra, you aren’t-”

“Don’t bother.” Catra narrows her eyes. “I know how I am around you two.”

“It’s okay to be jealous.”

“Oh, gross. Girlfriend comfort.” Catra rolls her eyes but there’s a faint quirk of her lips that tell Adora she’s joking. “I would have turned on the Horde to get your attention.”

Adora sputters, torn between laughing and gaping at her, “No way.”

“You really think I cared about that place? Please.” Catra’s smile dims into something darker. “I’d have saved myself a lot of sleepless nights if I’d just followed you.”

“I know why you didn’t.”

“Doesn’t make it better.”

Adora elbows her, “I’m not in the right here either. I know what I did.”

And Catra is looking at her, eyes far away and sad, like she was sending a final message to her from so long ago, “Doesn’t mean you deserve it.”

Adora grimaces. It’s the same sour taste in her mouth. The same words.  _ Take care of yourself, Adora.  _ It makes her fingers shake. 

“I get it.” She says. “My head doesn’t though.”

“Tell me what you’re thinking.” Catra’s leaning in, her lips pressing against Adora’s ear and it’s very distracting. The blonde almost forgot what she’s being asked. It’s comfortable to be held.

“I’m thinking about mistakes.”

“Oh, I see.” 

Adora barely blinks before she’s being turned around and pinned to the railing. The cold stone presses through her pajamas and she yelps. Catra is leaning in, arms on either side of her hips. She’s not smiling, but her expression is wistfully soft. 

“Was saving Etheria a mistake?” Catra asks. 

Adora opens her mouth but Catra is speaking over her, “Was saving me a mistake?”

“Catra-” Adora breathes, scandalized, “No way.”

Catra smiles, slow and gentle and  _ pained.  _ “Sometimes I think it is.”

It rocks Adora to her heart, right down to every heartfelt ache in her chest. She barely realizes she’s crying until Catra’s lifting her hands up to wipe them away. 

“I feel the same way.” Catra whispers. “They’re just thoughts, Adora. I don’t mean it.”

“Never.” Adora says, sniffling. “It was never a mistake, Catra. I’d do it again.”

“That’s the annoying part.” Catra sighs shakily into her hair. “I’m terrified of you, Adora.”

That’s only making Adora cry harder. She grabs the front of Catra’s shirt. She feels if she doesn’t it’ll all fade away. 

“Why?” She sobs. 

“I don’t want to lose you.”

She stands there on a Brightmoon balcony in the middle of the night and cries. She thinks Catra cries too, but she never lets her go, never unburies her face from the top of Adora’s head. They hold each other and it soothes the ache in her chest.

Later, after they’ve calmed down, Catra will whisper, “C’mon. Bed time.”

“I don’t know if I can sleep.” 

“Maybe.” Catra pulls back and threads her fingers through Adora’s. “But Glim’s in there. She’s got a knack for nightmare crashing.”

That pulls a giggle out of Adora. Catra cracks a grin at her and drags her along. It’s too dark to see, but Adora can feel the sneaky kiss touching her cheek before they both climb back into bed. 


	7. Chapter 7

.

.

Adora might have a problem. 

But it’s not her fault! It’s really, completely, honestly not her fault! She was doing fine. She was getting her dress fitted for the next princess prom (Scorpia’s!) and just, standing there. All she had to do was  _ nothing _ and the seamstresses would do the rest. Adora was fine with this. Everything was completely okay. 

If only she could breath in this thing. 

“Hey, um-” She wheezed. The top was supposed to be tied in the back and the seamstress was only manhandling her tiny bit more than she should. “It’s a little-”

“Oh, Adora!” 

Scorpia poked her head out from the nearby curtains, practically glowing with how wide her grin was, “Aren’t you excited? Well, I know I am. But are you? I’m just nervous, it’s my first prom. Oh, well, not my first one but-”

Adora smiled despite the pinch of her ribs, “I’m super excited, Scorpia! It’s technically my first one too.”

“Ohhh!” Scorpia’s eyes were sparkling. “That’s right! Oh my gosh, it needs to be perfect. I need to go find someone. Someone who plans things!”

She made to leave and fumbled with the curtains. Adora grimaced as Scorpia’s tail smacked into something and it  _ crashed  _ out of sight. Scorpia stumbled and yelped, “My dress!”

The seamstress looked distressed. Adora breathed, felt around for the room she needed and definitely didn’t have, and said, “You can go help her, I’ll be fine.”

She waits until she can’t hear Scorpia’s voice anymore. Making sure no one was around, she jammed her thumbs under the back of her dress and tugged. It pushed on her chest and nearly winded her. She exhaled. It burned. 

“No, no.” Adora shook her head. “You’re She-Ra. She-Ra can breath in space. You’ve got this, Adora.”

Walking was worse, she realized. She’d long ago mastered the princess art of smiling while in heels. Glimmer could proudly claim she could pass as a naturally raised princess if she didn’t reach down for her feet. Adora doubted she could even nod her head with how stiff she felt. Her breathing was in short, sporadic bursts. She felt like a scarecrow. 

“Hey! Adora!”

She barely had time to react before something tiny and blue was barreling into her torso. All the breath in her lungs left her. She imagined this is what drowning felt like, something constricting her chest while no air made its way to her. 

“Chill, Frosta. You’re suffocating her.”

“Sorry!” Her assailant laughs, hopping down and revealing a head of blue hair and a mischievous grin. “See you at the party, Adora!”

“See you.” She wheezes.

Frosta scampers off. Netossa walks by her, grinning lazily and waving over her shoulder. 

“See ya, Adora.”

Adora weakly returns the wave. She’s glad Netossa didn’t stick around to chat. She doesn’t think she has the words to do that. Her fingers restlessly tug at the front of her dress. It doesn’t offer any relief. 

_ Easy.  _ She gasps.  _ Easy, Adora, take it easy. _

“Adora?”

_ What now?  _ She almost cries in frustration. She tilts her head and pauses. It’s Glimmer and gosh, if she wasn’t dying of asphyxiation she’d be melting over how cute her girlfriend looked. Glimmer was wearing a white dress, frilly with pretty gold accents. Little blue crystals dangled from her sleeves and caught the light just right. She was beautiful. 

Adora opened her mouth, wheezed, and ended up in a coughing fit. She pounded her chest to get herself back under control. Glimmer was approaching and looking amused. 

“What?” The princess smiled. “Cat got your tongue?”

“You’d know if that happened.”

_ Oh no.  _ Adora didn’t even have the time to react to the innuendo. Catra’s arms were draping over her and the added weight only made her double over. Only then did Glimmer’s smile disappear.

“Are you choking on something?” 

Catra’s making a noise and her claws are tugging at the dress ties and, oh okay alright  _ air felt good.  _ Adora shuddered and almost sunk to her knees. A full breath of air felt wondrous. She hadn’t realized how grey her vision had gone. Glimmer’s dress was a pale pink. 

“Oh my god.” She says. 

Glimmer’s face is right in front of hers, brows furrowed, “Why didn’t you say anything?”

“Couldn’t.” Adora rubs her chest. Her heart hammers underneath her fingers. “Hurt.”

“Jeez.” Catra’s hand is still on her back, fingers trailing goosebumps over her spine. “You were just going to go out to the party like that?”

Adora blushes, “I wasn’t-, no, I was just- Scorpia-”

“You were totally going to do it.” Catra sighs and nudged her with her head. “Seriously. Don’t do that.”

“Catra’s right.” Glimmer is batting her hand away and unruffling the front of Adora’s dress. “Take care of yourself, Adora.”

“Right.” She relaxes, “I can do that.”

.

.

She couldn’t do this. 

They were exploring the crystal caved of Nabath. Not just exclusively her and her girlfriends. Bow, Perfuma, and Scorpia were traveling with them. The caves were supposed to be beautiful, romantic in some cases. It was a popular travel destination. Glimmer had been looking forward to it for weeks. 

“Oh, oh!” Her girlfriend fluttered from cave to cave. “This crystal’s magic is different then the red one. That’s soo cool! Bow, where are you?! Come here!”

“There’s blue ones down here.” He cried from another tunnel. 

Glimmer laughed, disappearing in a swirl of pink. Adora smiled fondly. She didn’t really understand the appeal of glowing rocks, but if Glimmer loved them, then she’d love them too. Melog mewled from beside her and she idly patted her on the head. Catra was somewhere, likely still playing hide and seek with Socrpia and Perfuma. 

Well. More  _ hide  _ than seek. Apparently Perfuma had discovered crystal flower crowns and was adamant Catra be her first victim. Catra didn’t look upset about this, treating it like a game as she stealthily crept from rock to rock. Sometimes Adora would catch sight of her and receive a wink. It made her laugh. 

She wasn’t laughing as she stood there and pretended she hadn’t just sprained her ankle. 

Everyone was having so much fun. She frowned, testing the weight on her right foot carefully. Melog murmured and nudged her knee. She pet her again, “It’s okay. I’m fine.”

Melog huffed. The action was so reminiscent to Catra. Adora carefully lowered herself to the ground, wincing all the way. It put her in a good position to wrap her arms around the cat. 

“Thank you, Melog.” She whispered. “But I don’t want to bring the mood down. I can wait.”

Another solemn mumble. The cat licked her cheek and she giggled. 

“They’ll come back. Besides,” She winced as she stood up, “I don’t think I can walk.”

The pain wasn’t too bad. If she stood perfectly still, it was almost non existent. Only when she twitched it or put weight on it did it flare up. The idea of climbing through tunnels on it made her nervous. 

“Psst, hey!” 

Adora blinked. She looked over her shoulder at a small cluster of green crystals. Catra poked her head out, glancing from side to side. 

“They're gone?” She hissed. 

Adora smiled bemusedly, “Yeah, they went down the blue cave.”

  
“Not Glim, I’m talking about the flower brigade.” Catra said but was nonetheless leaving her hiding spot. “But it’s good to know she’s having fun.”

“A lot of fun.” Adora nodded. “She was squealing about rainbow colored ones earlier.” 

“Cute.”

Melog rumbled something and Catra’s ears swiveled in the cat's direction. Adora watched them both in wonder. It was always fascinating to see the two communicate. 

“What?” Catra muttered, a sharpness in her tone.

“What’s she saying?”

“She’s saying you’re hurt.”

Adora winced.  _ Oops.  _ She tosses a fleeting glare to Melog who looked content to purr against her leg.  _ Traitor.  _

“I’m fine.” She says when Catra’s face is contorting to something severe. “I just tripped earlier, is all.”

Catra didn’t relax, “Oh yeah? So where’d you get hurt?”

“My uh,” She shifted nervously and winced when it agitated her ankle, “my foot.”

Catra is crouching before her quicker then Adora could say anything else. The blonde flinches, eyes wide as her girlfriend forces her pant leg up. 

“Catra, hey-!”

“Yup. That’s sprained.” Catra sighs something else under her breath that Adora doesn’t catch. Her girlfriend doesn’t take her hands away, her fingers prodding at the darkly colored bruise on her foot.  Adora sucks in air sharply between her teeth. The sting was twice as worse now. 

Catra murmured, “Definitely sprained.”

“It’s fine.” Adora tried, sounding less sure when she’s fighting down tears of pain, “I can just stand here till we have to go. I don’t mind.”

“Mhm.”

The sarcastic drawl has her bristling, “I can totally manage this just fi-”

She yelps, her entire words turning sideways. Arms are wrapping underneath her knees and under her back, lifting her up effortlessly into a bridal carry. Adora gapes at her girlfriend. Catra smiles dryly down at her. 

“What? I trained in the Horde too.”

“No, no I’m-” Adora can feel heat crawling up her neck, “You don’t have to carry me, Catra.”

“I want to.”

She buries her face into her palms. Her entire face felt like it was one fire. Catra chuckled, sounding every bit like the cat that got the canary. She started down one of the tunnels, Melog happily trotting behind them. 

“Guys! Guys the crystals are glowing!” Glimmer yells, appearing in a burst of pink. “They’re starting to form together and it’s making another rainbow color- Why are you carrying Adora?”

“She sprained her ankle.” Catra says before Adora can fish herself out of her embarrassment. The blonde turns her head into Catra’s shoulder. 

“Oh no.” She feels a pair of hands prodding the same spot Catra had. “That looks bad. Adora?”

“I’m here.” She mumbled against Catra’s shirt. 

Catra whispered, “She’s embarrassed.”

“It’s cute.”

“Guys.” She complains. 

Catra snorts, “It’s what you get for trying to hide it.”

“What?” Glimmer’s hands are tugging at Adora’s until the blonde has no choice but to turn her head to face her girlfriend. Her princess is half smiling at her, exasperated, “Adora don’t do that.”

“I just-”

“Wanted to let me have fun?” Glimmer guessed. “Thanks, but I’d rather you not be in pain. I’ll teleport us to the ship.”

“Okay.” Adora mumbled. 

.

.

The necklace was pretty.

Adora stared at the shop window. The little silver clasp on a thin string didn’t look like much, but it had caught Adora’s eye twice now. The three of them were out shopping in one of the villages. Mostly, it’d been to grab junk food and more pillows since Melog had torn into half of theirs. 

It wasn’t a shopping trip for jewelry. Was 2,000 expensive? Adora frowned, upset she never properly sat down to learn Etheria’s currencies. Back in the Horde, the only currency was ration bars and chores. What did 2,000 mean?

“Hey, you.” Glimmer appeared beside her, a small bag slung over her shoulder. Her girlfriend fished a hand through it, “I got your candy.”

“Oh.” Adora tore her eyes from the necklace, melting a little at the green snack candies. “Glim, you’re amazing.”

“I try.” Glimmer’s eyes find the window and she smiles wider. “Hey, I remember this shop. My mom used to take me here all the time.”

That piques Adora’s curiosity, “Really? What’d you do?”

Glimmer shyly tucks a strand of hair behind her ear, “Oh. Heh. Nothing. I was a kid and I liked looking at all the toys. It’s all kid stuff in there now.”

Adora blinks, “Kid stuff.”

  
“Well, yeah.” Glimmer pointed at the assortment of jewelry, “It’s all fake.”

“If it’s fake, why is it so expensive?”

“It’s not.” Glimmer’s eyes find the  _ 2,000  _ and she giggles. “It seems like a lot, but that’s just pocket change.”

Adora’s hopes jump up at that. The necklace doesn’t seem so far out of reach now. She’s almost eagerly stepping towards the shop door when Glimmer’s words ring in her head.  _ Kid stuff  _ and  _ fake  _ are very important. She frowns and her hopes sink a little. She-Ra doesn’t buy kid stuff, right?

“Adora?”

Right. Glimmer is looking at her. “Sorry, what’d you say?”

“I asked if you wanted to go inside.”

“Uh, sure, if you want to.”

Glimmer’s face bloomed into a smile. She stands on her tiptoes to kiss Adora’s nose. The blonde’s too dazed to stop her from dragging her inside. The shop interior was as Glimmer said. Little paper planes hung from the ceiling and bouncy balls lined the shelves. A clerk greeted them from the back of the shop, but Adora was already swerving back to the window display. 

The necklace was gone.

“Oh.” Adora frowned. “I guess I missed it.”

“Missed what?” Glimmer asked. 

“Nothing. What else is in here?”

She spent the next half an hour following Glimmer through her childhood. Stories of a child sized princess running through the shop and screaming while the queen of Brightmoon frantically tries to catch her. Adora laughs at the image. It’s funny and cute all at once. 

When they leave the shop, Glimmer says, “You’re not very subtle.”

“Hmm?” Adora looks at her girlfriend. Glimmer is leaning to one side and smiling knowingly, eye sparkling with an emotion Adora can’t decipher. “What?”

Wordlessly, Glimmer reaches into her bag and pulls out the necklace. 

Adora’s eyes widen, “Glim, you didn’t have to-”

“Hey, shush.” Glimmer is slipping the thread over Adora’s head. “It’s my kingdom and I get to decide what I give my girlfriends. Okay?”

“Glim…” 

“ _ Okay? _ ” Her princess presses, eyes hardening, “You deserve it, Adora.”

Adora melts, exhaling shakily. She reaches up to clasp the necklace between her fingers, “Okay, Glim. I’ll treasure it.”

“That’s hilarious.” Glimmer is threading her arm through Adora’s and pulling her forward. “That’s the equivalent of a stick of gum, Adora.”

“I love it.”

Glimmer laughs. 

  
  



	8. Chapter 8

.

.

Catra has been here before. 

Not in this place. She’s never been in Shadow Weavers garden. It doesn’t feel like Shadow Weaver was here, other than some of the creepy flowers. Perfuma had gone through the whole garden with the look of a woman scorned and had fixed up most of it. Now it was just A Garden, not Shadow Weavers. 

_ Good riddance.  _ Her tail lashes at the thought. The conflicting emotions over the woman were shelved. Melog was rumbling pleasantly at her knees and it was a welcome distraction.

Ordinarily, she wouldn’t be caught dead here. There were no good memories, no matter how beautiful Perfuma had made it. Except Shadow Weaver doesn’t know when to leave well enough alone and dark magic had started dripping through the ceiling. Glimmer had woken up in the middle of the night with a scream so loud Catra still felt the chill of it, even hours later when the sun had risen and they’d gotten Micah and Perfuma to investigate. 

Adora was frowning beside her, “I don’t see anything.”

“Yeah.” Catra huffed. “It just looks like a garden.”

“Well good!” Perfuma huffed from behind a bush. “I worked hard on it! To think, there’s something dark and  _ vile  _ nearby I just, ugh, I’m going to cry.”

“Easy, easy.” Adora is waving her hand. “I can transform into She-Ra and see if I sense anything.”

Micah is back at the doorway with Glimmer, but Catra still hears him when he says, “Just be careful. We don’t know what caused that.”

Glimmer doesn’t say anything. She’s been pale and shaky ever since the incident. It made Catra bristle, a familiar anger twisting in her gut. A gentle white light beside her eases her worries. She-Ra was hard to get used to, but after seeing Adora go cross eyed and stick her tongue out while wearing the skin of a princess. Well. It certainly left an impression. 

“Alright.” Adora is flicking her hand out. “Let’s see where the problem is.”

It’s almost too easy for her to find it. She pulls aside a table leg and sitting on the floor is a flower that screams  _ tis I the evil one.  _ It’s withered on the floor, a puddle of black muck surrounding it. Glimmer appears beside her in a flurry of angry pink.

“That’s it.” She breathes. “How do we destroy it?”

Catra shrugs, “Step on it?”

Glimmer gives her a look. Micah walks beside his daughter, a thoughtful look on his face, “If anyone can get rid of it, it’d be She-Ra.”

Adora’s summoning her sword, the white light shining like a halo around her, “Piece of cake.”

Catra’s been here before. 

She realizes it when She-Ra’s sword touches the flower. She realizes it when the red lightning arcs off the petals up the blade. She watches as Adora  _ crumples  _ to her knees. It knocks the breath out of her and reignites all her oldest fears, warped in ice cold blizzards and psychotic laughter. 

“Get her off it!” She screams.

Melog hisses and runs for Glimmer-  _ good girl-  _ and Catra bolts it for Adora’s back. She’s halfway there when Adora stands and it’s not right. It’s not the way _Adora_ stands. It’s like she’s on strings and the weight of her arms are too much. The princess turns her head to Catra and she feels her heart grow ice. 

Adora’s eyes are red. 

“Adora!” Catra springs into a leap. “Drop the sword!”

And Adora’s  _ swings it.  _

Catra has half a second to appreciate being on the winning side before she’s barely dodging a ray of light so powerful it disintegrates Perfuma’s bush. The princess hiding behind it yelps. Catra doesn’t let that stop her. She absolutely can’t slow down because if she does Adora will-!

“Wake up!” She bares her claws against the blade. “Wake up, wake up, wake up!”

There’s a moment where Catra can see it- the blade of power cutting through her hands like butter and turning her into a diced girlfriend. She sees the emptiness reflected in Adora’s expression. Can see every moment as Adora steps over her broken remains and goes after Glimmer-

-but Adora isn’t doing that. The white light fades and the sword disperses into golden particles. Catra blinks, unharmed and breathing heavily. Adora blinks back at her, blue eyes weary and an exhausted slump to her shoulders. 

“Destroyed it.” She coughs and falls forward. 

Catra catches her before she meets the ground. Adora gives a shaky breath into her shoulder but, it’s Adora again, and the utter relief has Catra sinking to the ground. She wraps her arms around Adora and squeezes her tight. Her heart is screaming in her ears and she can feel herself back in time, back in a blizzard, watching a mistake try to kill her.

Adora murmurs, “I didn’t hurt you, did I?”

“No.” Catra kisses the top of her, feeling fragile. “You didn’t hurt anything.”

Adora slumps against her. All the energy drains out of her with a long sigh and Catra feels it down to her soul. She barely registers Glimmer scampering to their side, eyes wide with fright. 

“That was- what  _ was  _ that?” She frets, brushing Adora’s bangs aside. “Adora? Talk to us.”

“Tired, but I’m here.” The blonde cracks an eye open to watch them. “I don’t sense anything else in the room.”

“She’s right.” Micah is standing over them, concern on his face, “But, I’m confused. What just happened?”

“It’s a long story, dad. Adora’s tired.”

“Catra?” Adora is raising her head and looking up at her. “You okay?”

She sputters, almost brushing it off, but Melog is mumbling in her ear reproachfully and she falters. Her heart is still backed into a corner, the shadows have eyes, and every voice telling her she’s done wrong sounds like Adora’s. 

“It’s like that time.” She starts, feeling small. “You remember it. We were all there. I poisoned you.”

Adora’s eyes shine, “Yeah. I tried to kill you.”

“And I’m going to kiss you both.” Glimmer said, dragging them both down until they knocked their heads together. Catra couldn't find it in her to react to the manhandling, letting herself lean into Glimmer as the princess dragged the both of them into a messy hug. 

Catra only relaxes when Melog brushes against her back, her tail curling around Catra’s waist. Glimmer’s arm is secure around her shoulders and she can feel Adora’s breath on her cheek. Tentatively, she turns her head and presses her lips to Glimmer’s cheek. Her princess doesn’t look happy, but something softens in her expression.

“I’m sleep deprived.” Glimmer announced. 

“Sleep.” Adora agreed, barely awake as it was. Catra didn’t doubt she’d curl up on the floor and sleep if she could. 

“Ohhhh!” Perfuma appeared and Catra snorted at the flower crown placed on her head. “A sleepover! I’ll grab Scorpia!”

“A sleepover?” Catra echoed, unsure. 

“It could help.” Glimmer nudges her, eyes gentle. “Unless you don’t want to.”

She thinks about it and decides it doesn’t sound so bad. More like a bigger distraction. “Yeah. A sleepover sounds nice.”

Adora snores.

.

.

“And  _ that’s  _ how I got forty two servers to crash!”

Frosts scoffed from her bean bag, “There’s no way they let you in that restaurant, Entrapta.”

“I don’t think she’s talking about that kind of server.” Mermista drawls.

Catra snickers into Glimmer’s lap. Her princess is doing wonders by carding her fingers through her hair, playfully edging around her ears and bringing pleased noises from Catra. Melog mirrors her on the opposite side of the room, purring up against a very unconscious Adora. The blonde had claimed the bed and cocooned herself in blankets so thick it was making an excellent footrest for Mermista. 

Catra snickered again. Her girlfriend was adorable. 

“But I  _ told  _ them I wanted little food.” Entrapta cries. “Little food. Tiny cupcake. It’s very easy to make.”

“Wait, you mean you actually-”

Perfuma was laughing, hiding her giggles behind Scorpia, “I didn’t say anything I’m so sorry-”

“No, no.” Entrapta shakes her hand dismissively. “Perfuma was an excellent assistant. Almost all of them had no idea what a cupcake  _ was. _ ”

Frost gasped, scandalized. 

Glimmar laughed, “Oh no, how dare they.”

“I  _ know.  _ See, Mermista, Glimmer agrees with me.”

“Sure.” Mermista smiles and shakes her head. “And how long are you banned there?”

  
“Indefinitely. Hey, we should play charades!”

“Oh, oh!” Scorpia is leaning forward. “Guys, I’m a pro at this.”

That does it for Catra, who bursts into delighted laughter at the shenanigans around her. Gardens and dark powers are far from her mind. There’s no blizzards, not even the ones Frosta creates poke at old memories. It’s just her and Glimmer’s lips pressing to the top of her head. 

“You’re cute.” Glimmer says. 

“Oh, stop.” Catra sighs. Her smile feels permanent. She feels warm. “I love you.”

“Gross.” Glimmer teases, her breath tickling Catra’s ear. “Girlfriend love.”

Catra mock glares at her, “You’ll take it and you’ll like it.”

Glimmer laughs. 

Later, all of them are arranged in a princess pile. There’s legs sticking everywhere and arms where they shouldn’t be, but Catra finds her girls. No shadows, no dark magic, just them. She curls around them and blissfully falls asleep. 


	9. Chapter 9

.

.

"What?"

"I'm sorry!" Adora sheepishly bows her head. "I said I owed them one! I didn't think they'd follow through."

Glimmer crosses her arms, "And the healers want you to babysit one of their kids? Because they gave you makeup to cover a hickey and you said  _ thanks I owe you?  _ Is that what I'm hearing?"

Adora winced. "Yup. Nailed it."

Catra is on the floor laughing. Glimmer herself can barely keep a straight face. The whole situation was ridiculous. With a sigh, she patted Adora's head. 

"Calm down." She said. "We'll help you. We kind of owe them too."

Adora deflated, "Oh my god, thank you thank you thank you. This means a lot." 

"It's just one kid." Catra pointed out. "How hard could it be?"

.

.

Glimmer is never having kids. 

She drags her hands down her face as little Wez, the healer's excitable child, pounces on Catra’s tail for the fourteenth time. Her girlfriend yelps and bristles. She’s almost proud of how much self control Catra has not to turn and kick the child into the wall. She does crouch and scoop the toddler up into her arms, her ears flat with irritation. 

Adora sits on the couch next to her and says, “We’re bad at this.”

“No, we’re just-” Glimmer sighs loudly. “This isn’t us.”

Adora shrugs meekly, “I thought, maybe, it’d be fun?”

Glimmer frowns. Catra is holding Wez in her arms. The little boy has cute pink butterfly wings and huge doe like eyes and he’s reaching for Catra’s ears in childlike wonder. Catra, who’s only ever been exposed to one child and it’s Frosta, looks uncomfortable. But her girlfriend is indulgently leaning down and letting the toddler in her arms grab at her ears. 

Glimmer melts at the scene. Catra looks soft, confused and wincing, but her lips are quirking upwards a little as Wez giggles. 

“I don’t know.” Glimmer says. “Maybe. It’s not so bad sometimes.”

“We don’t know how to act around kids.” Adora admits, “We weren’t raised with parents.”

Glimmer turns her head, “Not even Shadow Weaver?”

Adora smiles but it’s weak, “I don’t think I learned anything from her.”

Wez takes this moment to appear, apparently having escaped Catra’s arms. He laughs as he jumps into Adora’s lap. Adora raises her arms in surrender as if a bowl of soup had just been dropped on her. The hero worship had been sparkling in the child’s eyes ever since Adora had walked through the door. It made Glimmer smile. 

“She-Ra!” He was punching the air energetically. “She-Ra, pow pow pow!”

Adora chuckles, unsure but amused, “That’s right, kiddo. She-Ra goes pow pow pow.”

“Pow pow pow!”

Catra groans as she drops besides Glimmer, “There’s no way that kids gonna take a nap. He takes one look at us and flips out.”

“We  _ did  _ save Etheria.”

“Naps are more important.”

Glimmer snorts. She throws one arm around her girlfriend and hooks her in, presses a messy kiss to her cheek. Catra huffs but doesn’t complain. She drops like dead weight in Glimmer’s arms and it’s nice. She can hear Wez babbling and Adora nodding encouragement to him.

“Form?” He claps. “She-Ra form? Please?”

Adora pats his head with a big grin, “I’m already She-Ra. Pretty cool, huh?”

Wez gasps, “Cool!”

His attention flutters around very quickly before it lands on Glimmer. Glimmer waves at him as his eyes start sparkling. 

“Can we poof?” He asks. “Please poof?”

“Hmmm.” Glimmer makes a show of thinking about it. “I don’t think I can. I’m pretty low on magic. I need to save some to get home.”

It was a blatant lie, she could teleport a hundred times more no problem. But he didn’t know that as his eyes blew wide in awe. She ignored Catra’s giggling into her tummy. 

“Mama says food helps.” He suggests.

Adora laughs, “You sound like her.”

“I wanna be like mama!” He giggles. “I want to heal She-Ra!”

Glimmer lets her head fall onto Adora’s shoulder, her heart growing fond of the little child. She can feel Adora stiffen before she’s scooping Wez into her arms and pressing a kiss to his forehead. 

“Woah!” He cries. “Princess kiss!”

“That’s right.” Her girlfriend is smiling, something gentle in her expression. “You’ve got She-Ra luck now.”

“I’m cool now.” He says decisively. 

Catra raises her head and smirks, “She-Ra luck, huh? Will it save you from the Tick Ells?”

“Tick Ells?” Adora echoes with a raised eyebrow, “What’s-”

“Tickles!” Wez screams and almost falls off Adora’s lap in his scramble to get away. Catra is much faster, arms scooping the toddler up and tickling him. Wez shrieks happily. 

“She-Ra!” He laughs. “She-Ra, help!”

Adora hesitates. 

Catra seals the deal by rolling off the couch, Wez held high in her arms as she crows, “I have kidnapped the healer from you, princess! There’s no getting him back!”

Glimmer bursts into giggles, “Oh no! Whatever shall we do!”

She nudges Adora. Adora starts, still looking unsure, but standing up. She was willing to play along and it made Glimmer all warm at the sight. 

Adora said, not sounding very She-Ra, “Unhand him?”

Catra sticks her tongue out, “No.”

“Help me, She-Ra!” Wez is giggling. “I’m captured!”

Adora was still shifting nervously on her feet. Glimmer sighed fondly. Her awkward girlfriend. She decided to toss her a bone. 

“She-Ra!” She called dramatically as she could from the couch. “Use your rainbow sword slash!”

“Uh?” Adora is looking at her with very wide eyes, “Uh, right. Of course. The rainbow sword slash.”

Catra gasps, scandalized, “You’d use the rainbow sword slash? But it obliterates all evil!”

“That’s right!” Adora pointed at her, more sure of herself, “But the healer isn’t evil. He won’t be affected at all!”   
  


“Curses!” Catra sank to her knees. “I’m ruined!”

Wez smile was dropping and he was climbing on Catra’s shoulder worriedly, “Wait! Wait, wait! She-Ra, she’s okay! She’s okay!”   
  


Adora burst into laughter, looking teary eyed and happy, “I know. She’s the greatest.”

“I’m dying.” Catra the Great said from the floor. “I’m dead.”

“Noo!” Wez frantically climbed over her. “No, please come back! I’m sorry!”

Glimmer almost fell off the couch laughing. The scene was too sweet as Catra dramatically reached into the air. 

“Wez? Little guy? Is that you?” She fake coughed. “This is it for me. You’ve got to...take a nap.”

Glimmer almost went into a coma with how hard she wheezed. 

“A nap?” Wez grabbed Catra’s hand with wide eyes, “How? Why?”

“I’ll tell you later.” Catra groaned. “I can’t say. It’s my time.”

“No! Not like this!”

Catra flops to the ground. Wez looks close to tears and Adora blinked, out of her depth. Glimmer decided to step in, stolling over and scooping up the distraught child. 

“Now, now.” She soothes, wiping his tears. “Catra is just taking a nap. But she won’t be better unless you sleep too, okay?”

“Oh.” He sniffles. “You promise?”

“Princess promise.” She kisses the top of his head. “Let’s get you to bed.”

He doesn’t settle down immediately, of course. He’s wired and chatty and Glimmer endures a ten minutes discussion on how powerful the rainbow sword slash is. He eventually dozes off. Glimmer tip toes out of his room and rejoins her girlfriends. 

Catra is still on the floor, sitting up and leaning on her fist. She’s sprawling out suggestively and wiggles her eyebrows when Glimmer enters, which makes her crack a dumb grin. Adora is sitting on the floor beside her, legs crossed and giggling. 

“That was stupid.” Her blond says. 

“Thanks, I’ll tell DT you said so.” Catra smirks. 

Glimmer sits down beside her. She leans down and presses a kiss to Catra’s temple, murmuring, “You did great. He loves you.”

Catra relaxes, expression softening, “He’s pretty cute.”

“Yeah.” Adora nervously rubbed her arm. “You’d think I’d be used to that kinda stuff.”

Catra turns and tosses her arms around Adora’s waist. Adora rolls her eyes but pets her girlfriends hair. It’s cute. Glimmer isn’t sure if she’s swooning or still dizzy from laughing so hard. 

“You two did amazing.” She says. “You’re great with kids.”

“No, pffft, no way.” Adora denies. “I suck.”

“He still loved it.” Catra mumbled. “I had fun. Felt ridiculous, but he looked like he was having the time of his life.”

“Definitely made his day.” Glimmer smiles. 

They quietly enjoy each other's company. The only noise is Catra’s tail thumping against the floor. It’s Adora who breaks the silence, tentatively nudging Glimmer with her elbow. 

“You had fun?” Adora asked. 

“Mhm.” She scooched closer to steal a kiss from Adora. The blond makes a happy noise against her mouth but breaks it a little too quick for Glimmer to enjoy it. 

“I know you weren’t happy in the beginning.” Adora continues to ramble. “I was just, well, I was having fun. Catra had fun.”

“She’s asking if you like kids.” Catra mumbles.

Adora blushes. 

Glimmer stares. Her heart is beating a little too fast in her chest and she can feel her palms getting sweaty. The prolonged silence is making Adora squirm. 

“It’s okay, it’s fine.” Her blonde, her princess, her Adora  _ oh my god  _ is still rambling. “I was just curious.”

“Maybe, uh.” Glimmer swallowed nervously. Her throat felt really dry and, wow, was it hot in here? “Maybe in the future. Maybe.”

“Maybe.” Adora echoes, eyes gentle. “Okay.”

Catra makes a long, content noise. “I’m okay with that.”

“Okay.” Glimmer breathes. 

Adora leans forward to press her own kiss to Glimmer’s lips and it’s butterflies and light and  _ maybe.  _ It makes Glimmer nervous and excited. It’s a different energy then before. Something fragile, something like a promise. 

  
It’s an unsaid  _ forever  _ and it makes Glimmer’s heart soar. 


	10. Chapter 10

.

.

It wasn't always okay.

There were days Adora's scars were loud. Catra could count every line. Could count every point her claws had harmed her. There's three small faded ones on the side of her nose.  _ Kitten fingers  _ Adora had joked. Catra is nervously reminded of how close she came to taking out Adora's eye. 

And sometimes Adora isn't okay with her scars. It's days her girlfriend huddles under blankets and snaps at her if she gets too close.  _ Don't touch me  _ burns worse when she watched Adora trace the two scars on her cheek. It makes the lead weight in her chest unbearable to see the rake marks on her back. 

It's those days that Glimmer will take Catra on walks. She'll talk about meetings and the brunch she had with her father and giggle at her own jokes. It soothes Catra's nerves. Later, Adora will poke her head out if her cocoon and reach for Catra. It'd melt her worries away in a heartbeat. Hushed apologizes and whispered promises were the remedy to bad days. 

Sometimes it's Glimmer.

Catra is less sure around her. She grew up with Adora, she could read her like a book. She couldn't read Glimmer's anger. Oh, she knew how to make it worse. All her time taunting and snarking gave her heaps of information on what  _ not  _ to say. 

"You don't even  _ care!" _

Catra press's her mouth into a very thin line.  _ I care  _ and  _ you never brought it up  _ and  _ Glim please  _ are all on the tip of her tongue. Her girlfriend is standing in front of her, eyes wide and livid. The pink magic is sparking in the air. Any other time, it'd be fascinating how magic reacted to her emotions. Pink looked deadly in the light of fury. 

"You haven't asked at all! What am I  _ supposed  _ to say? My mom  _ died  _ because of  _ you!" _

It burns worse than Adora's scars. It's something new and fresh and still openly bleeding. It's in the tears in Glimmer's eyes and the heartache in her anger.

"Say something." 

Catra runs a hand down her face, "Nothing I say will make this better."

Glimmer snarls, "Say  _ something _ ."

"What do you want me to say?" She snaps, internally wincing at her own words. "You know I'm sorry. I've told you before! I messed up!"

"That doesn't help!" Glimmer cries. "Nothing will help!"

"Then don't ask me to!" Catra feels barely an octave away from begging, "I  _ can't  _ fix it. I can't bring her back, Glim!"

Her princess's face contorts. Anger, grief, longing. Catra feels it reflected in her own helplessness and frustration. Glimmer is the one who starts forward, every step like a soldier's march. Catra tenses when her hands clasp onto her arms.

"Tell me you regret it." Glimmer says, eyes swimming with pain. "Tell me you remember her."

Catra hesitates. She picks her words carefully, "I regret a lot of what I did, Glim. Opening the portal is one of them." 

Glimmer sobs. Catra hesitantly reaches her arms forward. She doesn't pull Glimmer into a hug. She's not brave enough for that. Eventually, she steps into Catra's arms. She sighs into Catra's shirt and all Catra can do is melt. She twines her arms around her girlfriends shoulders and gives a cautious kiss to her temple.

"I'm sorry." She murmurs. "I'll be saying that till the day I die."

"Don't." Glimmer whispers. "You don't deserve that. You couldn't have known."

"It still happened." Catra feels her ears fall flat.  "It's still hurting you."

"You're hurting too."

"Don't do this." Catra pushes her nose into Glimmer's hair. She smells like melon fruit and freshly cleaned blankets. It's long nights talking to the stars and memories of spaceship dates. It's cuddling during a storm. It's her princess, eyes wide as the moon. "Don't make it about me. I'm tired of that."

Glimmer's mouth is against her throat, "It's not just you. It's us. You, me, Adora."

Catra exhales shakily, "I don't want it to be. I want to love and be loved and I don't want it to  _ hurt. _ "

"I'm sorry." Glimmer breathes. "I'm sorry, I hurt you."

"I hurt you first."

"Shadow Weaver was your mom, in some form." Glimmer is raising her arms around Catra's neck, her eyes shining like crystals. "Even if you don't want it to, it still hurts."

Catra bristles, "I'm  _ glad  _ she's gone. Do you have any idea what she did to me? All my life, the Horde was- and all _she_ did was-"

Glimmer kisses her chin, "Adora has told me."

Of course, Catra closes her eyes. Shadow Weaver was just as prominent in her life as she was in Adora's. She's gone and, in typical Shadow Weaver fashion, left all her terrible memories behind. She pushes down the rising jealousy that Adora got the lucky end of the stick. It's a stale feeling that can't even form. It was long exhausted in the war. Now, all she feels is empty. 

"I don't want to remember her." Catra admits, feeling small. "I want to- I want to know more about Angella."

Glimmer sniffles, "She was awesome."

They sit on the bed, surrounded by pillows and blankets. Glimmer fits snugly into her lap and Catra drapes her arms over her girlfriends shoulders. Her princess leans back against her. It's nice.

"She used to tell me about my wings." Glimmer was mumbling, "I was self conscious about how small they were. She was always brushing my hair and telling me how to take care of them. I thought it was ridiculous, they were so tiny, how could I even groom them? But she kept telling me how. Every time she brushed my hair, she told me how."

Her girlfriend goes quiet for a moment. She can feel the grief in every tense muscle. Catra rolls her fingers down her girlfriends arms and hears Glimmer sigh. 

"I wish she saw them now." Her princess says. "She'd be so proud."

Catra takes a deep breath. It hurts in her lungs. There's pressure behind her eyes and she refused to cry, "I wish I met her."

"She would have liked you."

The hurt  _ burns. _

"Glim, no." She begs. "Don't lie." 

"I'm serious." Glimmer is tilting her head, a half smile on her face. "I was a total brat. She got frustrated with me, but she loved me so much. She would've loved you."

Catra doesn't cry, but her breath rushes out unevenly. She gives a small hiccup. A fraction of the grief Glimmer feels, the absence of a mother, and it _aches_. She can feel herself shaking. So can Glimmer. 

"Catra." Her girlfriend reaches up and cups her face. "Catra, I love you."

"You're not fair." Catra murmurs. "You can't be mad at me and then hold me like this. I feel like everyday I fall in love with you."

"Well, somebody has to keep you on your toes."

Catra grins weakly. She sits and listens to stories of a different childhood. She listens to the smile in Glimmer's voice. Her heart beats contently. 

“Do you think she’d be okay with this?" She asks, "With us?"

Glimmer hums, “I think so. She probably would have thought it would make us rebellious or something. Like, sneaking off into the woods to make out.”

Catra snorts, “Really?”

“Yeah. I mean, I already do that.” Glimmer snickers. “I can hear her in my head. ‘Glimmeh, is that a hickey?’.”

Catra wheezes, the mimicry of the former queen of Brightmoon throwing her off. She’d never heard anyone sound like that. It makes Glimmer lose it too. It’s a soft moment surrounded by comfort and love and a giggling princess.

The bedroom door opens and Adora pokes her head in, "Hey, do you two want cannolis? I stole from the kitchen again."

It's so absurd Catra laughs. 


	11. Chapter 11

.

.

Adora was a stranger to a lot of concepts.

She was learning. It wasn’t easy, but she sat herself down and poured through book after book of what she could. There were cultures she didn’t know about. Some languages made themselves known around the castle and Adora would sigh and make the solemn march to the library. Bow smiled indulgently at her every time she asked for help. And slowly, day by day, she understood. 

That didn’t mean it didn’t startle her sometimes. 

It’d be as simple as her returning from a mission with Scorpia. Just an average workout day. She’d decided to pick up a cute red scarf for Glimmer since it was getting colder in Etheria. Glimmer’s eyes shined at the gift. 

“Marry me.” She’d said.

Adora balked, “Uh- um, uh-”

“Thank you so much!” Glimmer either had no idea or Adora had missed something. Her girlfriend was cuddling the scarf in her arms happily. “I love it, Adora.”

“Uh. Sure. Glim.”

That wasn’t the only time. Catra seemed to pick up on the strange habit of proposing after Adora did nice things. And it wasn’t even worthwhile things that  _ deserved  _ that kind of reaction! She’d sleepily get up in the night to Catra shivering. Grabbing an extra blanket from across the room wasn’t even anything to thank her for. She’d draped the blanket over Catra who  _ sighed  _ with relief. 

“Marry me.” Her girlfriend murmured. 

Adora was going to die if they kept this up. She already felt like she was too close to the sun. Her skin burned with embarrassment and she awkwardly made her way to a neighboring kingdom, because obviously this required outside intervention. There weren’t many people she could go to for relationship advice.

“Spinnerella?” 

The wind princess sipped her tea thoughtfully. Adora shifted in her seat, aware of the guards outside the door and how small the table was and Netossa smirking at her. 

“I think,” Spinnerella started slowly, “You should bring it up. Communication is very important, Adora.”

“Uh, yeah.” Adora rubbed her arm. “How do I do that?”

“It’s simple.” Netossa said. “Ask them to stop.”

Adora frowned, “But I don’t want-”

She snapped her mouth shut. The two princesses were looking at her with wide eyes. Adora realized she wasn’t flying close to the sun. She was practically orbiting it, on a crash course with it,  _ she’s going to die of embarrassment oh no.  _

“Adora-” Spinnerella starts.

“I didn’t-” Adora feels bad for cutting her off. She winces at how desperate she sounds. “I don’t know- listen, I’m just- I’m scared.”

“Okay, okay.” Netossa raises her hands up, “Easy, girl. Spinny and I aren’t judging you. It’s just surprising.”

“Well-” Spinnerella says. 

“Spinny.” 

The wind princess stops. Adora stares at them and feels the  _ something  _ unsaid practically vibrate in the air, “What? What’s wrong?”

“Nothing’s wrong.” Spinnerella smiles gently. “But I was thinking-”

Netossa huffed, “Don’t meddle, Spinny.”

“She came to us for help, darling.”

The net princess relented, crossing her arms with a sigh. Spinnerella beamed and turned to Adora. The action had her straightening, more alert. 

“Adora.” Spinnerella said again, as if the blonde would forget her name. “Do you want to marry them?”

She was totally forgetting her name  _ oh god.  _

“Hggrk-” She reeled and flailed as she lost balance in her chair, clinging to the table for dear life, “No, no, definitely- yes I- no, I’m just- is it hot in here?”

Netossa was laughing. Great. 

Spinnerella was hiding her smile behind her hand, “It’s fine to feel that way, Adora. There’s no rush to get married to your partners. You’ve been together for awhile now. You have a lot of time to think about it.”

“I don’t think Catra or Glimmer are going anywhere.” Netossa adds. “Put a ring on it.”

“Netossa.”

“What? If we’re meddling, we’re going all out.”

Adora is on fire. She manages to say, “Marriage? As in,  _ actually  _ proposing? There’s no way I can do that.”

Netossa points at her, “But you like it.”

Adora winces. She doesn’t know what to say to that. This already feels like a bad idea. Spinnerella sighs and sets down her tea.

"Saying you want to get married doesn't mean you  _ have  _ to get married." She explained gently. "I told Netossa I wanted to marry her far before I actually did it."

"She started crying." Netossa says. 

"Darling, please."

Adora hesitantly asks, "Does it feel different?" 

"You mean marriage?" Netossa blinks at her. "Not really." 

Spinnerella nods, "It's another way of saying 'I love you'. It's kind of like a promise."

"A promise?" Adora echoes, warmth blossoming in her chest. Her girlfriends voices are in her head and it's doing something to her heart. 

"Yeah." Netossa looks at Spinnerella. They don't explain it but they don't have to. Adora can see it in the softness of Netossa's expression and the shy smile on Spinnerella's face. It's something bigger than  _ stay with me _ . It's something that can't be described. 

"I'll think about it." She tells them. 

.

.

She doesn't bring it up. 

She knows she should. It pulls at the back of her mind constantly. She feels like she's hiding something and it makes her antsy. 

She's sitting on their bed and letting Glimmer lay across her legs as the princess talks about her day. The dresser and it's chair are occupied by Catra, who's mastered the art of talking while she gives herself a haircut. 

She's saying, "Why didn't you punch her?"

Glimmer sighs, "I would if she wasn't the ambassador of Nabath."

Adora blinks. Clearly she missed a bit of the conversation. She shrugs her shoulders and reaches down to pet Glimmer's hair. Her girl makes a  _ hmm  _ noise and smiles up at her. 

"I bet Adora would have punched her." Catra says followed by a  _ snip.  _ "Bring Melog next time."

The cat meows at the foot of the bed. It makes Glimmer laugh, "We need the ambassador alive, Catra."

"If she calls you a terrible ruler again, I can't make any promises." Catra huff's. "Besides, Nabath sucks. Just ask Adora's foot."

"Hey." She says, cracking a smile. 

Glimmer turns her head into Adora's shirt to muffle her giggles. It makes Adora warm and reminds her she's aiming straight for the sun, but now it's accompanied with bells and white dresses. She tries to keep it together. 

"I wouldn't have punched her." Adora says, "I probably would have told her off though."

"Ohh?" Catra turned her head, her freshly cut bangs brushing her eyes and it's so cute. "What would you say?"

Adora clears her throat, "Nabath is a beautiful planet with many gorgeous crystals. If only it's ambassador looked the same."

Catra cackles, almost dropping her scissors. It makes Adora giggle. She looks down and sees Glimmer smiling at her fondly.

"Marry me." Her princess says. 

And Adora is stuck in an orbit around a sun that's been scorching her for so long that she sometimes forgets her name and sometimes forgets why she shouldn't say some things. Because Glimmer is looking at her like  _ that,  _ like she's all that matters in this universe.

She says, "Okay."

Glimmer's smile disappears. Catra's laughter cuts off with a choked wheeze. The noise startles Adora. She feels like she's been sprayed with cold water. Glimmer is gaping up at her, eyes as wide as dinner plates. 

Adora hastily says, "I'm just- It's okay if you- I wouldn't  _ blame  _ you I just- if you  _ want  _ to."

“Wait.” Glimmer blinks rapidly, “Wait,  _ Adora,  _ what did you just say?”

Catra’s chair screeches against the floor and Adora winces. Her girlfriend is walking over to the bed, ears flat and eyes just as wide as Glimmer’s. Both of them looked scared. 

“Okay?” Adora repeated weakly. This was such a bad idea. 

Glimmer inhaled sharply, “You’re serious. You’re serious, are you being serious?”

Adora shrugged her shoulders. Words felt hard at that moment. She felt conscious of how red her face was. The bed dipped as Catra joined them, scooting over until she was beside Glimmer. She could feel Melog rumbling against her feet. She felt trapped. 

“What’s happening?” Catra asks, eyes darting between them, “That was a joke, right?”

“I , uh-” Adora winces at the crack in her voice, “I don’t want it to be?”

“You’re  _ serious. _ ” Glimmer breathes unsteadily, looking like she might faint. Adora puts a hand on her shoulder just in case. She feels like she’s helping, but she can feel how clammy her hands are. She feels sick. 

“Serious about what?” Catra’s tone takes on a sharper edge. “Adora,  _ speak up. _ ”

“Marriage.” She practically squeaks. “Marrying. Three of us.”

“ _ She’s serious!”  _ Glimmer wails, dropping her head into her hands and throwing herself backwards onto the bed. Adora wobbles from the impact. “Catra,  _ Adora is proposing-” _

“I’m not!” Adora protests, “I mean, I just- it’s not like I don’t want to- I want-  _ I love you two. _ ”

Catra looks a little pale. Her tail is twitching rapidly and it’s only Melog’s cool blue that reassures Adora her girlfriend isn’t going into cardiac arrest. With shaking hands, Catra grabs her by the shoulders. 

  
“Us?” She asks, her voice vulnerable and Adora is taken back to a teary eyed friend hiding under a blanket and her heart  _ aches.  _ “You want to marry us?”

Adora nods. 

Glimmer makes a noise that’s caught between a wail and a sob. It alarms Adora and she almost opens her mouth to take it back, take it all back,  _ just a joke guys sorry,  _ but Catra is pulling her into a hug so tight it pops her spine. Catra hiccups and Adora feels she’d rather jump out a window then hear Catra cry.

“Even me?”

Adora melts, hooking her arms around her, “Yes, Catra.”

Catra sobs. It breaks Adora’s heart and she’s whispering soothing  _ it’s okay, I’m sorry, you’re okay _ . She feels Glimmer shift and then the princess is leaning her head on Adora’s shoulder and it feels a bit wet and  _ oh _ okay she made  _ both _ her girlfriends cry. 

“I’m sorry.” Adora mutters, feeling her own tears prick her eyes. “I didn’t mean to jump it on you two like this. I wasn’t thinking.”

“You’re serious.” Glimmer whispers into her skin.

Adora wilts, “Glim please say something else so I know I didn’t break you.”

Glimmer laughs. It’s too high for Adora to be comfortable, but there’s a tearful note in it that quells some of the fear in her chest. An emotion,  _ happiness. _

“You’re the worst.” Glimmer sniffles. “Gosh, I’m a mess.”

Catra’s head is firmly buried in Adora’s neck. Her voice is muffled when she says, “Get in line.”

“Sorry.” Adora grimaces. “This isn’t how I pictured this going.”

“How did you want this to go?” Catra mumbles.

And her face is already on fire and everything she’d fantasized in her head shot to dust so she throws up the white flag. It couldn’t get worse, she thinks. 

“I wanted to take you guys to the beach.” She says, “And, I dunno, I wanted it to be okay. I think I would have asked then. Maybe dropped hints, you know. To help.”

Glimmer snorts, “You’re so cute it’s hurting me.”

“Hey.” Adora says but it’s weak.

Catra is quiet and it bothers her. She jostles her shoulder and her girlfriend sighs, leaning back and out of her space. Her eyes are misty and her face red and she looks flustered. Adora’s heart does a back flip. 

“Are you okay?” She asks. 

Catra wipes her eyes with her sleeve, “No.”

“Oh.” Adora sinks in her spot, “That’s oka-”   
  


“No, no.” Catra leans forward and presses her forehead against Adora’s. “Stop it, shut up. I’m  _ happy. _ ”

“Oh.” Adora repeats dumbly, caught between blue and gold and unable to tear herself away. “That’s good? Glim?”

“Mmh.” Her princess huffs into her side. “Look at me.”

That was hard to do, but Catra leaned back for her and she obligingly turned to Glimmer- and was snatched by hands around her head and tugged down almost violently. She could barely yelp before Glimmer was kissing her. There were bursts of stars on her lips, galaxies behind her teeth, and supernovas in her head. It made her dizzy. 

They parted and Glimmer said, “I love you too.”

“Thanks.” Adora blinks to wake up a bit. “I mean, what? Uh, what happens now?”

Catra huffs, “Well-”

She cuts herself off and bites her lip. Adora watches her. There’s a cautious hope rolling in her chest. Her heart is beating so fast she’s afraid she might puke and ruin the moment. 

“Well?” Glimmer pushes. 

Catra’s face softens, “It’s...not a bad idea.”

Adora might slip into a coma. She realizes this as she pitches forward and Catra has to catch her before she absolutely passes out on this important conversation. She sways dizzily in her spot. Her girlfriend is looking at her dryly.

“Don’t do that.” She says, her face as red as Adora feels. “You’re stuck with me now.”

“Oh.” Adora squeaks.  _ Oh. _

“It’s not a bad idea.” Glimmer echoes beside her, something longing in her voice, “You’re sure, Adora?”

Adora swallowed nervously. Her voice is hoarse when she says, “Give me a sec.”

It’s embarrassing. She’s scrambling off the bed and tangling herself in the blankets. She almost suffers a spectacular fall and is glad Melog is there to stop her from eating the ground. She stands up and her girlfriends are watching her with wide eyes. 

“Okay.” She says. “I’m just- I’m gonna do it.”

“Do what?” Catra echoes, now her turn to look faint.

“Oh no.” Glimmer says. 

Adora takes a moment to cover her face with her hands and  _ breath.  _ The  _ it’s real, this is happening, I’m gonna be sick  _ is doing a number on her head. Her thoughts are crammed together and she can’t piece them apart. She can’t tell if this is the right thing to do. But they’re looking at her as if she hung the moon in the sky and she can’t back out now. 

_ You’re She-ra.  _ She tells herself.  _ You’ve got this.  _

She gets on one knee. 

“I don’t have, uh,” She squirms under their stares, “I don’t have rings. I don’t have anything. But I’ll be the one to ask. Catra, Glimmer...if you want to...let’s get married.”

“Oh.” Catra says, hand to her chest. 

Glimmer’s face is a tomato. Her eyes are trained on Adora’s. She realizes with a start Glimmer is  _ shaking  _ and only has a moment to process this before there’s a blur of sparkles and she’s getting an armful of princess. 

“Adora!” Glimmer cries and Adora flails as they both fall to the floor. Except another pair of arms are wrapping underneath her and cushioning her fall and it’s Catra. 

“You are such a dork.” Catra whispers, “That was so cheesy.”

“I do my best.” Adora wheezes. 

She sits up and she’s got both her girls in her arms. They’re teary eyed but they’re grinning and laughing at each other. Adora snickers too, feeling foolish and goofy and  _ well that could’ve gone better  _ and it only makes her laugh harder.

When they’ve calmed down, she tentatively asks, “Was that a yes?”

Glimmer wipes her eyes and chuckles, “Yes, Adora. It’s a yes.”

_ Okay.  _ Adora thinks.  _ Maybe falling into the sun isn’t so bad.  _

She looks at Catra. Catra’s ears are flat as she turns her head away, a shy twitch ear twitch making itself known. She hesitantly takes Catra’s hand. 

“Catra?”

Her girlfriend exhales heavily, “...I’m going to be the worst wife ever.” Which is basically as good as a yes as Adora’s gonna get. Maybe even worse, as hearing Catra echo the word  _ wife  _ is making Adora’s vision swim again. 

“Get in line.” Glimmer jokes. 

“It’s not a competition, sparkles.” Catra is leaning forward and pressing a messy kiss to Glimmer’s cheek. The princess is giggling too hard to swat her away. “I’m marrying you too, princess.”

  
“Good.” Glimmer says. “I’d get jealous if Adora had you all to herself.”

Catra’s face turns red. All their faces are red, Adora realizes. They look ridiculous and it’s making her laugh again. Catra nudges her sharply with her elbow. 

“Adora, stop laughing at me.”

“I’m not!”

Catra sulkily scooches over to Glimmer and huddles into her side. Her princess looks overjoyed at this. She wraps her arms around Catra and sticks her tongue out at Adora. Adora feels too much like clouds and warmth to do anything but grin dumbly at them. 

“I love you so much.” She says. 

“Get in line.” Her girlfriends say at the same time and burst into laughter. 

In another kingdom, Spinnerella will open a letter addressed to her. She’ll blink in surprise at the picture inside. Adora, Glimmer and Catra are sitting on a bench. Catra is leaning her head on Glimmer’s shoulder while the princess reads a book. It’s a cute picture, especially since she never imagined Glimmer of all people with reading glasses. It’s adorable how sleepy Catra looks cuddled against her.

It's Adora who’s looking at the camera. She’s sending a secretive wink and her hand is raised just so that something on her finger catches the light. 

_ Save the date.  _

Spinnerella is already running down the hall calling for Netossa. 


	12. Chapter 12

.

.

“Catra, have you ever worn a dress before?”

  
“Of course I have!”

Bow was looking at her. Catra bristles that he’s  _ still  _ implying she’s done something wrong. She knows how to put on a dress, she’s attended princess prom twice now.

(She didn’t wear a dress either of those times and he knew it)

She glares. 

He smiles, “Your dress is on backwards.”

She hisses. The white lace and the frills were bothering her and she struggled passed the ribbons like a soldier on a battlefield. She didn’t understand why Glimmer couldn’t help her but apparently it was bad luck to see her fiance’s before the ceremony. It’s not like she hadn’t been hanging out with them for  _ months  _ already. 

She angrily grabbed at the laces and started to unthread them. Bow yelped and turned away, standing as straight as a board as he said, “Catra, warn me next time!”

“Buzz off.” She snapped, paused, and sheepishly said, “Can you...help me tie this?”

“Are you-?”

“Yes, get over here arrow boy.”

He relaxed and came to her side. She turned her head away as she felt the laces neatly tied at her back. He even hummed as he did. 

“Glimmer snuck a look at you earlier, by the way.” He snitches, which Catra finds delightful. She grins and looks over her shoulder. 

“Oh yeah?”

“Ohhh yeah.” He rolls his eyes. “She  _ might  _ have a nose bleed.”

Catra laughs so hard she breaks out into a coughing fit. Bow looks smug at this, “There’s a smile.”

“I  _ am  _ smiling.” She says. “I’m happy.”

“You’re really tense and snapping at all the maids.” He counted off his fingers. “You stained the first dress with ketchup and pretended it was blood to try and bail out. The maids had to get me to calm you down after your first meltdown. I’m pretty sure you’re still freaking out.”

Catra crosses her arms, “None of those are true.”

“Uh, I was there?”

“So what?” She wilts a little. “I can’t be the only one having a hard time.”

“Ohhh, trust me.” Bow raises his hands up. “King Micah is with Glimmer and Scorpia is with Adora. They’re having  _ just  _ as bad of a time, if not worse.”

That eases a bit of her worries. She hadn’t seen her girls all day and it was bugging her. She was a little jealous Glimmer got to be the sneaky one. What was the point of tradition if it was already broken anyway? 

She huffed and let Bow wind the lace on her sleeves, “Who’s bright idea was it to have Scorpia tend Adora?”

“Glimmer, actually.” Bow said. “Scorpia may not be the best at tying things, but Adora is a known worrier. She’s the best we have for the job.”

Catra hums. All she can imagine is a stressed Adora pacing her room while Scorpia listens like some weird therapy session. And then she imagines Adora in a dress like her own, her hair let down and allowed to flow down her back and prettied up with make up and  _ nope she can’t do this. _

“I’m going to puke.” She tells him.

“There, there.” He pats her head. “It’s happy puke.”

“Oh, gross, you’re gross.” 

“It always made Glimmer laugh.” He smiles. “Dumb jokes are her weakness.”

Catra snorts and feels softer, less sick, “Don’t I know it.”

He smiles wider. He looks like he wants to say something but a sharp scratching at the door distracts him. His face falls flat, “Melog you can’t come in! You’ll chew on the dress!”   
  


“No she won’t.” Catra said. “...Probably.”

“No chances.” He turned to her. “I’m not taking  _ any  _ chances, this is all going to go smoothly.”

Catra stared. The puzzle pieces were fitting together and she pointed a finger at him accusingly, “You’re freaking out too!”

  
“No I’m not.” He crossed his arms. “I’m  _ officiating.  _ If it’s not perfect, I’m going down in history as the worst best friend ever.”

“Oh please.” Catra snorted. “You’re a much better choice then plan B.”

He gives her an affronted look, “Plan B? You guys had a plan B? Who was it? I bet it was Perfuma.”

  
“Wrong Hordak.”

“Catra!”

She laughs, grabbing the ends of her dress and wobbling over to the mirror. She looks different, is her immediate thought. She’d let her hair grow out into it’s usual mane, but she felt it wasn’t good enough for this event. It was tied into a high ponytail, with a white ribbon bow. The wedding dress wasn’t long, thankfully. It didn’t drag on the floor and the ends brushed her ankles teasingly. Her sleeves fluttered down to her hips and she could feel the lace on her bare back. 

Her tail curled nervously. She looked pretty. 

“I’m too pretty.” She said out loud for Bow’s benefit.

He was giving her a look, “Well, that’s a good confidence boost.”

She reached up and gripped her head, “That’s not a good thing!”

“Sure it is!” He carefully patted her shoulder, “Glimmer and Adora are going to cry when they see you.”

“ _ I’m  _ going to cry when I see them.”

He chuckles. He goes to say something but there’s a loud  _ crash  _ from the hallway and a scream of ‘ADVENTURE!’. Bow bristles.

  
“Who let him out?” He whispers, “Mermista! Of course! I’ll be right back, Catra, don’t go anywhere!”

The door closes behind him, a curious meow and ‘hi Melog’ fading away. Catra’s ears twitch in the silence. It’s just her and the reflection of her in the mirror. Her reflection looks pale and weary. 

“Didn’t think we’d make it this far.” She tells the mirror. “Pretty wild, huh?”

Her mirror just looks sad. 

A sound in the corner turns her head. There’s a curtain covering a section of the wall and it’s  _ giggling.  _ Catra’s eyes narrow and she smirks at the familiar noise. She slowly makes her way over and leans against the wall. 

“Come here often?” She asks the curtain.

Glimmer pokes her head out. It takes Catra’s breath away and all her bravado is sinking into a pit. Her princess has her hair pinned by hair clips and it marks the return of her adorable bangs. She’s glowing, her smile wide and radiant and she’s  _ wearing a wedding dress. _

“Cat got your tongue?” Glimmer wiggles her eyebrows. 

Catra exhales, “If I wasn’t wearing forty pounds of make up I’d kiss you senseless.”

“Aww.” Glimmer smile is devious. “Not even for me?”

Catra twitches. Her tail lashes as she says, “You’re going to smear it.”

“That’s no fun. When did you become no fun?”

“Where’s your dad?” Catra huffs. “You need a leash. Bow told me about you peeping on me.”

Glimmer’s face contorts into a pout, “ _ Bow. _ ”

Catra smirks at her. She’s leaning forward to sneak a kiss when the door opens. She panics, all thoughts of Bow finding them running through her head.

“Move over!” She hisses and practically shoves Glimmer aside to get behind the curtain.

“Ouch! Catra, hey!”

“Shhhh!”

Catra quietly listens, her ears flicking to the sounds of footsteps. There’s a few of them. More than one person. Cautiously, she peeks her head out. The door is closed and there’s no one there. It makes Catra even more nervous when she hears the audible click of heels getting closer and closer. 

And then Adora’s voice is saying, “Wow you two look ridiculous.”

“Adora!” Glimmer pokes her head out indignantly, “Are you using Melog?”

“Yes.” She admits shamelessly and Catra freezes. There’s a hand ghosting through her bangs. The touch is so gentle and soothing. She knows who it is and reaches blindly until she finds a wrist. Fondly, she presses a kiss to it. 

“Adora.” She says. 

Adora sounds breathless, “Catra?”

“Turn it off.”

Melog rumbles happily and suddenly they’re  _ there  _ and oh no, she really should have been more prepared. She’d completely blown sideways at the sight of Adora’s hair down, flowing freely down her back. Her dress is different in how much more sleeker it is, a different kind of radiance then her princess. There’s little gold clasps on her wrists and a small gold circuit around her neck. 

Adora is smiling shyly, “You’re pretty.”

“That’s my line.” Catra says and it takes her a moment to realize her voice had an echo and she’s looking at Glimmer. Her princess is beaming at her. 

“Pretty kitty.” She sing songs. 

Catra feels her face ignite, “We’re not starting this.”

Adora giggles, “Pretty paws.”

“No, shut up.”

“Cute kitten.” Glimmer wiggles her eyebrows. 

Catra groans, “ _ Stop.” _

But Glimmer is saying, “Beautiful wife.” And it does something to Catra’s poor flustered heart. She leans forward and sighs as she finally finds her princess’s lips. It’s the sweet taste that follows her into her dreams and starlight in her smile. She can’t breath and it feels so good. 

“ _ You’re  _ pretty.” She says when they part.

Glimmer looks flushed as she says, “I think you’re winning.”

“You’re  _ both  _ winning.” Adora says happily. “But I don’t want to give Scorpia a heart attack, so I’ll be heading back.”

Catra snorts, “How’d you distract her?”

“I told her I needed to use the bathroom.”

“What?” Glimmer hisses, “It’s that easy?”

Catra laughs. Adora shushes her and she realizes too late she was too loud. The door is opening and Bow is gaping at them like he just stumbled upon a murder scene. Catra hides behind Adora. 

Adora waves, “Hi Bow.”

  
“On your  _ wedding?!”  _ He shrieks, “No, no. Adora! Out!”

The curtain moves suspiciously and Bow zeros in on it like a hawk, “Glimmer!  _ Out!” _

Catra barely hears a giggle before it fades away and the curtain stills. Adora rubs her shoulder sheepishly and walks out with Melog, tossing a ‘I’ll see you soon’ over her shoulder. It makes Catra warm and she sighs longingly. 

Bow crosses his arms, “Why are you three like this?”

“Deal with it.” She says. 

.

.

It was like a dream.

It’s the princess alliance standing up from rows of chairs. It’s the flowers around a little glass bowl and it’s Bow standing proudly in front of them. It’s her girls by her side. Glimmer’s wings are out and stretched wide around them. Her eyes are misty and her dress shimmers different colors as her magic  _ sings.  _ Adora is serene as a waterfall, her eyes gentle and far away. She sees the memories falling around her fiance- her  _ wife-  _ and her smile glows. Catra can feel the reality of it punching her in the chest. She can’t make words. She can barely blink. 

“Glimmer, Adora, Catra.” Bow hesitates and then says, “You’re my bestest friends. I would do anything for you three. Glimmer, we’ve been friends since childhood. Adora, you  _ changed my life.  _ Catra, you’re okay.”

“Thanks.” She says dryly. Her wives snicker. 

He’s grinning at her, “You deserve this, Catra.”

It chokes her up and how dare Bow make her cry at her own wedding. She sniffles and steps forward. It startles him and he flails when she drags him into a hug. Glimmer laughs and she feels two pairs of arms joining the hug. 

“Guys, your wedding-” Bow protests.

“We’re the best friend squad.” Glimmer sniffles. “We’re not going anywhere, Bow.”

“Onto the next big adventure.” Adora says.

Bow tears up, “Ohh  _ man  _ I  _ knew  _ you’d do this.”

Catra laughs. It’s barely heard over the roar of the crowd and the applause. Perfuma’s flowers cascade around them. It feels like a dream, Catra stares wondrously at her friends as they giggle and shove flowers into each other's hair. 

“I never want to wake up.” She says. 

Glimmer’s voice is teasing in her ear, “Too bad I’m very good at that.” And dumps a bunch of lilies on her head. It makes her sneeze and that just sets Glimmer off again. They end up using the flower crown as weapons and it only gets a little serious when Entrapta lets her bots go nuts. It’s crazy and chaotic and Catra has the time of her life.

“I can’t believe you three ruined your own wedding.” Bow says.   
  


Catra shrugs, “Can’t ruin something that’s already perfect.”

He smiles. 


	13. Chapter 13

.

.

Salineas was not Catra’s choice. 

It was Glimmer’s. When it was first brought up as  _ hey let’s honeymoon here  _ Catra almost decided to go to Scorpia’s kingdom for the weekend. Adora was the one who held her back, promising it’d be fun and they wouldn’t have to get into the water and a bunch of things that had Catra relenting because Adora wouldn’t  _ shut up.  _

“Did you two forget I conquered this place?”   
  


Glimmer raises an eyebrow at her, “I almost destroyed Etheria.”

“Ohhh.” Adora was laying on the ground. “If we’re doing this, I win by default.”

The boat rocks and it makes Catra bristle. She can hear Seahawk and Mermista at the other side of the boat talking. It didn’t settle her nerves at all. 

“You can’t win.” Glimmer nudges the blonde with her foot. “You saved Etheria. That disqualifies you.”

“Great, we’re all disqualified.” Adora yawns. “Good game guys.”

"Cheater."

Catra exhales. Perfuma's lessons run through her head and she counts to three before she says, "You're missing the point."

"What's wrong with Salineas?" Glimmer leans back on the crate she's sitting on. She's wearing Catra's jacket over her shoulders. It doesn't hide her two piece swimsuit and, ugh, why does her wife have to be attractive when she's arguing with her? "It's gorgeous here."

"Again. Missing the point."

Adora hums, "Mermista said it's okay. I think she's upset you  _ haven't  _ visited yet."

“Are we talking behind each others back now?”

Catra turned her head. Mermista strolled across the deck, stopping to lean against the railing. The princess was smirking. 

“I’m hurt.” She said. “But seriously, why’d you say my name?”

Glimmer said, “Catra is nervous.”

“I’m  _ not  _ nervous.” Catra huffed. “Is no one else upset about this?”

No one spoke. It only made Catra more on edge. She sighed noisily and sunk further against the mast. 

“Is it the water?” Mermista guessed.

“I’m going to step on your foot.” Catra threatened. 

“Okay, okay. Not the water.” The sea princess shrugged her shoulders, “No idea.”

Adora was kicking her feet lazily into the air. The playfulness made Catra smile. It was a nice distraction from ugly Horde memories. The failures of Salineas and then the victories. It was all too bitter to think about. 

Catra grumbles, “I just don’t like it.”

“Cool.” Mermista said dryly. “Well, for the record, it’s a little unfair how you’ve been to everyone else’s kingdom  _ but  _ mine. So, yeah.”

“Technically, I’ve been here.”

“Doesn’t count.”

“We could visit the tavern.” Adora noted airly. “The one I got kidnapped in. Remember Seahawk?”

There’s a whimper from the front of the ship. Mermista sighs, “Whatever. I’ll let you guys-”

A rumble from underneath the ship startles Catra out of her skin. Glimmer yelps as she topples off her crate. Adora is sitting up with wide eyes. 

“What was that?” Her blonde asks. 

Mermista looks just as startled, “Uh...the waves?”

“Dearest Mermista!” Seahawk cried from out of sight. “The ocean is trying to capsize us!”

“Uh.” The sea princess screwed her face up in annoyance. “No? It’s not? I’m-”

She paused. She was looking at Catra. Her mouth formed an ‘o’. It had Catra standing up defensively. 

“What?” She snapped. 

Mermista winced, “I forgot to warn the ocean.”   
  


“That’s-” Catra blinked in bewilderment, “That’s something you can  _ do?” _

“Ohhh, yeah. Should’ve done, like, an hour ago.” Mermista blew out a breath. “I’d hold on to something.”

The ship rocked again. A shadow fell onto them and Catra was almost afraid to look up. She kept her eyes trained on the deck. She could barely see Adora scrambling to her feet. The hint of wide blue eyes. 

“Catra.” Her wife sounded scared. “ _ Catra,  _ for the honor of-!”

Cold. 

It’s a different cold then ice. It’s a blanket over her skin and it presses down on her. It’s a weird feeling. She feels like she’s being swallowed by something. She blinks her eyes. She feels heavy. 

She’s underwater. 

_ Oh.  _ Catra looks around dazedly. It’s dark. She can’t see the surface. Her lungs made themself known with a burn that wiggled its way up her throat. She clamped her lips. She ignored the black spots in her vision and pushed herself forward. 

She couldn’t find the surface. 

She couldn’t-

“Catra? Hey, c’mon, take it easy. Deep breaths.”

Catra blinks. She’s...not underwater. She’s on her back. The sun blinds her and she closes her eyes. Uncomfortable. She’s soaked to her skin and she can’t stop shaking. Too cold. 

Adora’s voice is by her ear, “You can’t sleep here. Let’s get you dry.”

  
“Mmmno.” She wants to curl up on that little rock and sleep forever. Adora had saved her, obviously, she didn’t need to know- wait. Wait, her brain was starting, wait wait. “Where’s Glimmer?”

“I’m right here.” A voice, further away. “Our boat isn’t.”

“Crashed.” Mermista’s voice carried on the wind, closer to where waves were. “Has anyone seen my boyfriend?”

“Mermista!”

“Nevermind.”

Catra groans. Sea noises were giving her a headache. She feels arms scoop her up into a bridal carry and her headache  _ shrieks.  _ She elbows her ride and hears Adora say, “Was that supposed to hurt?”

Catra peeks an eye open. Adora is golden and blinding, ugh, she’s being held by She-Ra. Grumpily, she curls into her wife and buries her head into her shoulder. She fully intends on sleeping the whole day there in Adora’s arms, but another hand is gently touching her shoulder. 

“Catra?” Glimmer’s voice is sweet in her ear. “How are you feeling? You were down longer than the rest of us.”

“Mmh.” She grabs Glimmer’s hand and tugs it closer to her. Her wife giggles and it’s so nice she sighs. “Stay.”

“I’m sure She-Ra can carry both of us.” Glimmer says. 

Adora says, “Please don’t.”

Catra hums. Adora is a furnace. She’d never admit it outloud but the comforting presence of She-Ra was an anxiety release. She felt safe. 

“You didn’t answer the question.” Adora points out. “Catra? You’re cold.”

“Cold.” She confirms through chattering teeth. 

A jacket is being draped around her. It’s hers and she’s got just enough energy to raise her head to watch Glimmer’s smile. The backdrop of the sunset and the sparkling waves made her wife look angelic. It was dizzying. 

“I love you.” She says it but it’s so garbled she doubts they heard her.

Glimmer kisses her forehead, “And you’re drenched. C’mon. Let’s go.”

.

.

Catra stared at her deck thoughtfully. 

Seahawk was making a variety of faces across from her, his own deck of cards held in a vice grip. She wonders if he knows his poker face is terrible. Or maybe it’s fantastic? She honestly couldn’t tell with how frequently he was glancing at Mermista. Said princess was doing a pretty good job ignoring him and painting Glimmer’s nails. Her wife was smiling and, okay, maybe she was glancing her way too. Whatever. 

“Four.” She says.

“Hah!” He grins. “Go Fish.”

Adora makes a content noise in her lap. Idly, Catra runs her claws through blonde locks. The weight of three blankets sits heavily on her shoulders. It’d been a long process of switching clothes and warming up and grumbling about stupid princess powers. Adora had handled it like a champ. 

“If you drool on me, I’m kicking you.” She whispers. 

Adora mumbles, “Love you too.”

The small, fond admission makes Catra blush like they’d just confessed and, ugh, why did Adora have to be cute now? She can’t even be upset about the whole ordeal. She got to spend the whole day in She-Ra’s arms. She’d never admit how good it felt. 

“Worst honeymoon ever.” She says, just to save face.

“It wasn’t so bad.” Glimmer says shyly. “I got to try CPR for the first time.”

Okay. Catra closes her eyes and  _ knows  _ she’s being teased, “You did not.”

“I didn’t but you should see your face right now.”

“I’m going to-”

Mermista hissed, “If you mess with the nails, I’ll declaw you.”

Catra almost snarled. It’s Glimmer reaching over and pressing a finger to her nose that stops her from kicking the sea princess in the shin. She looks to her princess and Glimmer wiggles her fingers. 

“Wanna try it?” She asks.

Catra frowns down at her claws, “...How?”

“I’m sure we can experiment.” Glimmer waves her hand. “What color?”

Catra looks past her claws to the top of Adora’s head. Her blonde is snoozing comfortably and making long, content noises into Catra’s lap. It’s soothing. It’s a color she’s fallen for and would chase forever if she could. 

“Yellow.” She decides. “But don’t make it ugly.”

“It’s going to look weird.” Glimmer warns, but her eyes twinkle knowingly, “We’ll wash it off when we’re done.”

“Cool.” Catra says and leans down to press a kiss to her wife's head. Adora mumbles in her sleep. It’s so adorable she does it again. 

“Ah, Mermista, can you do mine?” Seahawk asks excitedly. 

A long suffering sigh, “Sure.”


	14. Chapter 14

.

.

It was another stash. 

Glimmer examined the hoard curiously. It was sneakily hidden behind the dresser, carefully wrapped in a shirt she was sure she’d thrown out. Tugging it out revealed the wrapped candies and tarts inside. It was recent. From how warm the tarts were, she’d guess this morning.

She sighs. 

_ Waste not want not.  _ She rolls her eyes as she pops a candy into her mouth. She sets the hoard on the dresser and continues her search for her missing comb. It’s not the first time she’s discovered hidden food. Adora had a habit of raiding the kitchen and Catra was incredibly picky about her food. Most of the time she didn’t eat something unless she made it. 

Or unless Adora snagged it for her.

Glimmer huffed. It wasn’t  _ alarming,  _ it was actually kind of cute. If she looked at it with rosy wife eyes, they were just being playful. If she remembers where they grew up, she gets concerned. The life in the Horde is foreign to her. Of course she’s sat down and discussed some of the details with her wives. Shadows of it show up in Catra’s dreams and the way Adora clutches her chest. 

She squints at her candy.  _ Does trauma look like food? _

It wasn’t harming anyone and her wives were having fun. And, well, even she could appreciate a pleasant surprise every now and then. She happily chewed on her candy and continued her search for her comb. 

.

.

Catra liked to hide. 

It made itself known on rainy days. She’d disappear when her eyes had bags. Melog’s blue glow was the only comfort to Glimmer on those days. The cat has her head laid on her lap, enjoying the ear scratches Glimmer was giving. Glimmer cradled her hot cocoa in bed and watched Adora. Her blonde was sprawled on the floor, papers and folders scattered around her. 

She was balancing a pencil on her nose. Glimmer smiled helplessly. Adora hated paperwork. 

“It’s not going to do itself.”

“Hmmh.” Her wife grumbled, the pencil clacking to the floor. “Will you help?”

Glimmer chuckled, “That’s She-Ra paperwork. I can offer advice but I’m not much help in First One relics, Adora.”

“Uhnnngh.” 

“We could get my dad.” She suggested. “He might be able to help.”

“I don’t want to bug him.” Adora picked the pencil back up to twirl it between her fingers. “I can do it.”

Normally, Glimmer would let it go. But Adora has that expression on her face. It’s the same expression she wore during the battle of Brightmoon, the same one she wore when she accepted the failsafe. It’s sort of ridiculous to see it on her face when she’s facing  _ paperwork.  _

“Adora.” She sighs fondly. “It’s okay to ask for help, we’ve been over this.”

Her wife winces, looking at her apologetically, “Sorry. Old habits.”

“You’re fine.” She sips her cocoa. “Read me the first document. We can do this together.”

The evening passes peacefully. Adora’s voice is a comforting lull in her ears. She talks of dying stars. She tells stories of relics discovered on barren planets. She talks about  _ Eternia  _ and how it’s still opening doors. It makes Adora’s eyes flash with something magical. Glimmer can’t stop smiling. 

The bedroom door opens and Catra walks in. 

Glimmer takes in her appearance. She looks okay, much better then morning Catra who’d sulked away with drooping ears. Her wife was hiding a yawn into her elbow, tail flicking back and forth lazily. She looked content.

Glimmer smirked, “Have a nice nap?”

“Mmh.” Catra waves dismissively, strolling over to the bed to flop onto it. It makes Glimmer wobble and Melog meow indignantly. “Long day.”

“I know.” Glimmer’s eyes soften and she reaches over to run her hand across her wife’s back. Catra sighs. Glimmer let’s the playfulness drop and asks, “How are you doing?”

“Better.” Catra mumbles into the blankets. “Sorry, for freaking you guys out. Wanted to think.”

“It’s okay.” Adora says from the floor. “I was going to go look for you if you weren’t back in an hour, though.”

Catra doesn’t say anything, but Glimmer can imagine she’s happy about that. Adora wore her heart on her sleeve and she knows Catra’s weak to it. She’s weak to it too. 

“We missed you.” She whispers. 

Catra curls until her head is nestled against Glimmer’s hips. Her arms wind themselves around her waist. It’s an  _ I’m sorry  _ and it makes Glimmer’s heart jump. She continues to massage Catra’s back, happy to be cuddled. 

Adora says, “My wrist is covered in lead.”

“What?” Catra snorts, raising her head a bit to squint down at the blonde, “What have you been doing?”

“She’s reading over exploration reports.” Glimmer watches as her wife goes back to manhandling the pencil to balance on her nose. “Well, she was.”

“I’m getting to it.” Adora pouts, ruining her pencil balance again. “Don’t rush me.”

“It’s gonna be there all night.”

Adora mumbles something under her breath. Glimmer giggles.

Catra hums, “So I didn’t miss much, huh?”

“I’d rather be training.” Adora flicks her pencil around her fingers as if it’s a baton. It doesn’t drop to the floor. “I kinda wanted to go down to Perfuma’s kingdom and test She-Ra’s healing on plants again. I know it  _ works  _ but sometimes it’s, well.”

“Blows it up?” Glimmer finished.

“Lights it on fire?” Catra adds.

Adora glares over at them, “Thanks.”

The conversation derailed from there. They talked about Scorpia’s blossoming kingdom and that moved on to suspiciously familiar flowers blooming where it shouldn’t and Perfuma acting much too innocent about it. They gossiped about the ambassadors, the local villages, and even Swift Wind’s weird obsession with eating grapes.

“I found your stash this morning.” Glimmer says, since they were on the topic of food. “Where are you getting that candy, anyway? It’s not native to Etheria.”

Adora turns red. She flicks her pencil at them. With a wave of her hand, Glimmer sends the pencil teleporting away. Catra, who would have normally laughed at that, is oddly quiet. 

“Missions.” Adora mumbles. “Sorry you found it.”

Glimmer blinks, “Why are you sorry? It was good.”

“You ate it?” Catra laughs, “Good going, Adora.”

“Shut up.”

“Guys,” Glimmer’s smile drops worriedly, “What’s wrong? I don’t mind. If you’re mad I stole it, I’ll just get you some more.”

“It’s not that, Glim.” Catra sighs into the skin of her stomach. It sends tingles up her spine. “I don’t know how to explain it.”

“I do.” Adora gets up from her spot, “One sec.”

She walks across the room and reaches behind Catra’s wardrobe. Glimmer gapes as she retrieves a small bag, barely the size of her palm. Adora opens it and pops the candy bar into her mouth. 

Catra grumbles, “That was  _ mine _ .”

“You used the same spot twice.” Adora says around a mouth full. “Not my fault.”

“Wait,” Glimmer frowns, “Wait, what’s that explain? I’m confused.”

“It’s a game.” Adora continues, licking her fingers. “Back in the Fright Zone, well, we didn’t have a lot to do. Catra got into trouble a lot and had her rations cut pretty often. We made a game where we’d steal other people’s rations or food from the trainers.”

Glimmer stares, “No way.”

Adora was smiling, “We got in trouble so many times. We ended up making little, I dunno, what’d we call them?”

  
“Little hoards.” Catra whispered, “We’re part of the Horde, let’s make our own hoard. I remember that.”

Glimmer laughed, “Oh my god, that’s so cute.”

Catra purrs at that, her tail curling around Glimmer’s leg, “Yes, go on, give me more compliments.” 

“ _ Anyway,” _ Adora was giving them a dry look, “It got easy.  _ Super  _ easy. We kind of bit off more than we could chew. So, to spice it up, we decided to put ourselves against each other. Catra would hide her stash and I’d hide mine and we’d see who could find the others first.”

“We’ve been doing it for years.” Catra said. "Looking back on it...that really didn't help things, didn't it?"

Adora's smile toppled, something sad flashing in her eyes. Glimmer's reminded of long battles, where it was just She-Ra and Catra. They'd been rivals for three years. It was hard to forget something that left scar's on Adora's face, created shadows where Catra walked. Her wife sighed, "...yeah."

“That’s  _ so  _ not fair.” Glimmer crossed her arms. She wanted to get rid of the weird emotion hanging off them. “I want in on the little hoard game.”

Adora frowned, “It’s going to need a different name. Secret stash?”

“Adora, you’re so lame.”

“You’re five feet from me and looking pretty kissable, Catra.”

“Do it, coward.”

Glimmer laughed, “No, stop it. I’m angry. Stop making me laugh.”

Adora walked over to the bed and sat down, crossing her legs and pouting. It was so adorable Glimmer leaned forward to press a kiss to her nose. Adora’s face scrunched up. 

“You don’t look angry.” Adora said. “And we didn’t say you couldn’t join the game.”

“Good. Angry feelings gone.” Glimmer winked. “Hope you guys are good at searching.”

Catra’s ears perked up, “Is that a challenge?”

“Ohhhh.” Adora clapped her hands eagerly, “Glimmer can use magic, we’re  _ toast. _ ”

Glimmer couldn’t speak around her giggles. She managed to wiggle her eyebrows before breaking off into peals of laughter. Her wives were smiling at her. It felt nice to have them close again. 

“Hey, weren’t you doing paperwork?” Catra used her foot to push on Adora, “Go away.”

“That’s mean.” Adora pouted, batting away Catra’s foot, “I want to spend time with you two.”

“Cute.” Glimmer smiled, “But you’re not slick. Paperwork, then cuddling.”

“Or I’ll just destroy the papers with my healing powers.” Adora muttered darkly. 

Catra shoves her again and Adora loses her balance. She topples to the floor with a yelp, but Catra doesn’t leave it at that. Scurrying after her, Catra pounces off the bed and onto the blonde who  _ shrieks.  _ They roll around and thoroughly ruin the paperwork scattered on the floor. Glimmer is too busy clutching her sides to care. 

“Catra!” Adora cries. “Get off,  _ stop tickling me!” _

“Never!” Catra cackles. 

The blonde manages to wrestle herself on top, pinning Catra to the floor. Catra doesn’t stop struggling and wiggling around. Adora only manages to win when she steals a kiss, completely distracting Catra long enough for her to scamper away.

“Fine, I’ll do my paperwork.” Adora sticks her tongue out. “Jerks.”

“I dunno.” Catra licks her lips, “I kinda liked that.”

Glimmer waves her hand warningly, “I’ll get the spray bottle, Catra.”

Her wife hisses but she's smiling playfully. Adora laughs and that only sets Catra off again. Glimmer watches them tussle, fondness rising and falling with each beat of her heart. Melog rumbles from her lap. 

“My girls.” Glimmer sighs, patting Melog’s head. 

“What about us?” Adora lands ungracefully besides her, breathless and grinning, “Talking to yourself?”

“She’s plotting against us.” Catra is reclaiming her spot, but she’s leaning into Glimmer’s space and whispering against her lips. “Can’t have that.”

Glimmer blushes and laughs. The kiss is  _ Catra,  _ fierce and adoring and longing all at once. It sends sparks down to her toes. It’s an explosion and a gentle caress. She loves it so much she kisses her a second time. 

No paperwork gets done. She can’t bring herself to care.


	15. Chapter 15

.

.

“Did she go this way?”

“No! Try the other hallway!”

Adora watched her wife teleporting away. Her other wife was doing a pretty good job of scaling the walls and bullying every corner she could find. It left Adora standing there, feeling tired and exhausted when she hadn’t even done anything. She’d much rather be looking for Entrapta as well, except someone had to play babysitter. 

Wrong Hordak clasped his hands worriedly, “Brother, we’re in trouble.”

Adora groaned.

How Entrapta of all people had snuck into Brightmoon and boobytrapped the place was beyond her. While Brightmoon and Drill were allies and yes, Entrapta was one of her closest friends, there was still an army of mini Prime’s under her care. She tended to ‘whizz out’ as Catra put it. She’d show up at 2 AM and bolt propellers to Brightmoon to see if she could get it to float, or build a pipe system underneath it to catch loose bits of magical architecture. 

Or put a lightning rod on the roof because it was  _ a really good spot you guys. _

“Wrong Hordak,” Adora said into her hands, “Tell me something I don’t know.”

“Oh!” His eyes brightened. “I will do my best, Brother! Give me a few minutes to think on it.”

She dragged her hands down her face. Melog purred by her feet, tail thumping against the floor. It was a good tell of how harmless the situation was to see the cool blue of her mane. Catra was likely having the time of her life. Glimmer was probably going feral.

“Oh, how about this, Brother?” Wrong Hordak lifted up his hand. He pinched all his fingers to his thumb. “Look! I have made a creature. Fascinating, isn’t it? It can even open its mouth.”

“I’m She-Ra.” Adora whispered to herself. “She-Ra does not have a meltdown. I’m She-Ra and I will  _ not _ have a meltdown.   
  


Wrong Hordak was now simulating a battle with his two hands. From his cries of distress, it was getting intense. Adora decided he was well entertained and started down one of the hallways, keeping her eyes open for her wives. She didn’t see the danger in this. Brightmoon was dark, the rumble of thunder and rain overhead the only noise. Occasionally, she’d hear the sounds of guards running down hallways. 

Adora shivered. A meow at her side had her relaxing, her hand automatically petting the top of Melog’s head.

“Hey, good girl.” She murmured. “Stay with me, okay?”

The windows flashed with lightning. Adora paused, her gaze traveling to the rain tapping against the glass. The world outside was smeared in dark, dreary colors. Another lightning flash had her backing away, searching for darker places to walk. Melog’s blue glow was comforting. 

“Guys?” She called. “Entrapta? Catra? Glimmer?  _ Girls? _ ”

All that answered her was thunder. She fidgeted as she walked, her fingers toying with her wedding ring. It was a nice reminder she wasn’t alone. She was in Brightmoon. She wasn’t anywhere else but in Brightmoon. 

She turned the corner to another long hallway. Windows blanketed the left side of the hall, casting the entire hall in an eerie blue light. Adora walks slowly, her eyes taking in the clouds outside once more. 

She slows to a stop, “This is stupid.”

Melog hums. Adora doesn’t understand her, but huffs as if she was told  _ everyone else is having fun. _

“Yeah, I know.” She runs a hand through her hair. “I’m just- I’m thinking things again. Memories, I guess.”

She sits down by the window. Melog is already climbing into her lap. It brings a smile to Adora’s face, even as she shoves Melog’s paws away from crushing her. 

“Easy, I’m not in princess mode.”

Melog meows. Adora envies Catra’s ability to communicate. She leans her head against the window and listens to the rain sound. The Fright Zone is ringing in her head. Older memories, grey with sadness. Horde Prime’s ship. Claws in her back. Glimmer glaring at her  _ it should have been you.  _

A three year war. She wonders how different she is because of it. A younger Adora would be excitedly running through the castle. The search for a princess would have made her starry eyed. Now, it makes her tired. She feels old wounds and winces at phantom pains. Her back was aching. 

Adora knocks her head against the glass softly.  _ Stop that. You’re not even halfway through your twenties. Stop moping.  _

“I know that look.”

Adora sighs, “Give up on the chase?”

Catra is strolling out of the shadows as if she owned them. Her eyes glow in the storm. Her wife is holding a broken drone in her hands, almost as if she doesn’t know what to do with it. She looks indifferent, but Adora can see the guilty hunch of her shoulders. 

“Gonna have to apologize to Entrapta about this.” Catra mumbles. “It startled me.”

Adora smiles. She reaches a hand out invitingly and Catra perks up. She takes the hand and her wife sits down beside her, snuggling into her side. Adora throws an arm around Catra. Melog echoes her delight in happy rumbles. Three years felt far away. She buried her nose into Catra’s hair and  _ sighs.  _

“You had that dumb look on your face.” 

“Mmm?” 

Catra is turning her head into her shoulder, “I don’t know how to describe it. It’s just a face you can make.”

  
“Oh yeah?” Adora closes her eyes, “What’s it say?”

“My name is Adora and I’m about to cry.” Catra said dryly. 

It makes Adora laugh. She knows she shouldn’t, but having Catra at her side and hearing her snark in these dark empty hallways. It makes her head warm.

“I’m not a big fan of storms.” Adora says. “Not since-”

“Yeah.” Catra sighed. “Same here.”

“Yeah?”

“I don’t wanna talk about it. I just wanna be here with you.”

Adora quietly kisses the top of her head. The storm scratches itself against the window and howls angrily with each flash of lightning. Behind the glass feels different. Adora recognizes the feeling. It’s the same feeling she gets when looking back on her memories. There’s a glass wall separating her from it all. A wall that towers above the dark thoughts, triumphs boldly in the shadows of the storm. 

It starts with her wife. It’s the way she breathes, her breath brushing along Adora’s skin. It makes itself known in blue and gold and eyes swimming with longing and love. It takes Adora’s breath away, to be cornered by that gaze and realize it’s for her. It’s fragile and resilient and so  _ warm.  _

“I love you.” Catra says to her lips. 

Adora whimpers. The kiss is fragmented, caught between tiny gasps and whispers of affection. She hiccups and breaks away in embarrassment. She was crying. 

Catra smiles at her helplessly, “You’re such a softie.”

“I’m-” Adora rubbed her eyes, “I’m just so happy.”

Catra leans forward and peppers slow, cautious kisses over her face. Adora feels like she’s melting. She’s falling in a chasm with no end in sight and she doesn’t want to stop falling, never, it feels too good. 

“Catra?” A voice cries nearby. It breaks the spell over her. “Adora? Girls, where are you?”

“Over here, babe.” Catra calls. 

Magic winks in and out of the air. The missing piece to her wall appears, her hair disheveled and eyes frantic. Glimmer almost runs Adora over as she drops to the ground beside them, reaching over to snag them both into a hug.

“You two are seriously the worst.” Glimmer scolds, “The castle is defenseless and I couldn’t  _ find  _ you, Catra. I went back for Adora only to find Wrong Hordak crying about hand puppets.”

  
“Oops.” Adora sniffs. “My bad.”

Catra sheepishly rubs her shoulder, “Sorry, Glim. Heard Adora over here and had to check on her.”

  
“You don't look so good.” Glimmer is leaning into Catra’s space, pushing up her bangs and holding Catra’s face tenderly. “You’re pale. You okay?”

“Yeah.” Catra leaned into Glimmer’s hands. “I didn’t want to be alone.”

A rumble of thunder follows that. Glimmer nods, crawling over to settle into Catra’s lap. It makes her wife snicker and they playfully poke each other in the sides for a bit. Adora watches them fondly. 

“Adora was being mushy.” Catra said once they’d calmed down. “Sitting here alone in the dark.”

Glimmer sighs, “What am I going to do with you two?”

“Sit with us alone in the dark?” Adora suggests meekly. 

“Well, since you asked so nicely. Yes, I think I will.”

She listens to her wives laugh in the quiet of the storm. The thunder never felt so far away. She rests her head on Catra’s shoulder and sighs. She feels more than see’s Glimmer’s hand running over her cheek. 

“You were crying.” Her wife mutters. “What happened?”

“I kissed her.” Catra admits. 

“I’m serious.”

“I am too.”

Glimmer makes a soft  _ oh  _ noise.

“Girls,” Adora speaks up, “I’m right here.”

“Good.” Glimmer says and the hand is angling her face. Adora blinks into the dark and see’s reflected moons. “I’d be sad if you left.”

Glimmer’s kiss is a parting of clouds. It’s a moon over a crystal lake, a song that hums in Adora’s head. It’s magic, it’s wanting, it’s  _ her.  _ She’s not afraid to lean forward and take more than she should. Glimmer  _ hmm’s  _ into the kiss, eyes glittering happily. 

“Don’t tell Entrapta,” Glimmer says breathlessly, “But this was fun.”

“Hide and seek and trauma?” Catra mumbled. “No thanks.”

“I meant making out in the dark.”

  
Adora giggles into Glimmer’s shoulder, “Can we do that without Entrapta’s help?”

“We  _ already  _ do that.” Catra rubs a hand down her face. “Great, great, now that’s an image I’m never getting out of my head. Adora, you suck.”

“Not my fault.”

“You-!”

_ “Hello, hello!”  _ A voice booms around them.  _ “Is this thing on? Hello, testing? Hi Brightmoon! Entrapta here, speaking to you live from Drill! I hope you’re all enjoying your new state of the art sound system. I installed it twenty minutes ago! _ ”

  
“Oh my god.” Glimmer says. 

_ “I can now transmit messages whenever between kingdoms!”  _ Entrapta’s voice continued cheerily.  _ “Or play cheesy elevator music. Listen!” _

A dull tune started to play. Adora was too busy laughing to properly hear it. 

_ “I’ll stop by for routine maintenance to make sure everything’s in tip top shape. Oh, and if you see Wrong Hordak, tell him to come home! I’ll check back in after Plumeria’s upgrades. Bye Glimmer! Bye Catra! Bye Adora!” _

Catra had her face burried in her knees, “Perfuma is going to commit murder.”   
  


“She wouldn’t do that.” Glimmer grimaces. “Hopefully. We should probably make sure Wrong Hordak doesn’t accidentally startle the guards.”

“He’s Entrapta’s problem.” Catra huffed. “Can we go back to kissing?”

“Denied.” Glimmer giggles but is merciful enough to kiss Catra’s cheek. “We can kiss later.”

“We could make it a game.” Adora suggested, feeling mischievous. “First one to find him gets dibs on the first kiss.”

Catra is already hopping to her feet. She barely makes it halfway down the hall before Glimmer is teleporting besides her, hooking her leg through Catra’s and sending the both of them into a dramatic sprawl on the floor.

“Glim, you dirty cheater,  _ get off me!” _

“All's fair in love and war!”

Adora smiles and pat's Melog’s head. The cat looks up at her playfully. 

“Let’s go together.” She winks. Melog meows and the cloak falls over the both of them. Adora giggles as she sneaks by, the sounds of Catra and Glimmer laughing following her through the halls.

The storm is far away.

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> thank you for 200 kudos ;-;


	16. Chapter 16

.

.

“Would it be weird to give her a blindfold?”

“Catra, shush.”

“I’m  _ right here  _ ya know _.” _

Adora crossed her arms. Her wives were sheepishly hovering by the bedroom door. Catra had her hands behind her back, both of her eyebrows raised as if to say  _ so what?  _ Glimmer was stifling giggles behind her hands. Adora felt her eye twitch.

“Remember the  _ last  _ surprise?” She sighs. “I get it. Bow said you guys have been planning this for even  _ longer  _ this time, but I don’t want a fancy birthday! I like just being with you two.”

“Aw, how cute.” Catra wiggled her fingers. “Still no dice. It’s a surprise and you’re not going to find out.”

  
“And if you leave this room,  _ so help me,”  _ Glimmer made a strangling motion with her hands, “Stay here and stay  _ put.  _ We’ll come get you when the surprise is ready.”

Adora rolled her eyes, “Oh like I haven’t heard that before.”

“Behave!”

“And if you get kidnapped,” Catra points at her darkly, “I’m tying you to the bed and you’re never leaving our sight ever again.”

Adora groaned and dropped her head into her hands, “To the bed?  _ Really?” _

“Aw, she’s embarrassed.” 

“Catra, c’mon.” Glimmer laughed, tugging her wife through the door. “Adora, we’ll be right back. Love you!”   
  


“Love you.” Adora called back meekly. Catra blew a kiss before the door closed on them both. She could hear the both of them laughing behind the wall as their footsteps faded down the hall. Adora deflated, falling backwards onto the bed with a sigh. 

“Well.” She said to the ceiling dryly. “Happy birthday, Adora.”

“At least there’s no pirates.”

“And that’s another thing!” Adora sits up to glare at the only other occupant in the room, “Why are  _ you  _ here?”

Frosta shrugged from the chair, “I dunno. Do you guys always flirt like that?”

“Can you  _ not- _ ”

“Cause that was  _ super  _ embarrassing.” The ice princess snickered. “Your face got so red.”

  
“ _ Frosta. _ ”

“Relax, I’m the bodyguard today.” Frosta sighed, leaning on her fist. “Not like I have my own kingdom to run or anything. We’re in the same boat, birthday girl.”

  
Adora huffed, “I don’t need a bodyguard.”

“Pirates.”

“It was  _ one  _ time!” 

“Yeah, yeah.” The princess flippantly waved her hand. She propped up her knee, elevating the book in her lap. “Some of us have ruler stuff to do.”

“Ruler stuff?” Adora smiled, “Isn’t that a romance book?”

Frosta stuck her tongue out, “No.”

“It is! It’s the one about a girl trapped in ice who’s rescued by-”

“Ugh!” Frosta sinks in her chair, “Shut up! The bodyguard needs her space!”

“Frosta.” Adora sing songs, “Do you have a crush?”

“Shut! Up! I’ll freeze you to the ceiling!”

The teasing goes back and forth for a little bit before Frosta throws up the white flag. The princess stomps out of the room, cheeks flaming with embarrassment and tossing a scathing ‘happy birthday’ over her shoulder. The door shuts behind her.

Adora sighs with relief. She loves her girls, but the over protectiveness was exhausting. Keeping her in their room was already a lot. She wanted to spend her birthday  _ with  _ her wives. Spending it alone in her room was lonely. 

Adora hugged her knees and glared at the door. She  _ really  _ wanted to go search for them. It’d be easy enough to give the guards the slip. Frosta might be a challenge if she was still wandering the castle. If maybe she got a hold of Melog, she’d find her missing pieces no problem. 

_ But,  _ Adora dropped her head onto her knees,  _ but they’re worried.  _

It was excessive, but Adora grit her teeth and stayed put. On a different birthday, she’d almost died. She knows Glimmer and herself will act similarly around Catra whenever they’re in Salineas. It’s a certain way of showing they love her. Protectiveness. 

Adora relaxes. She would wait for them. She always would. 

.

.

She was dreaming.

She must have fallen asleep between pacing and sitting impatiently on her bed. She had to have dozed off. She was still in bed, only with the added weight of her wife leaning over her. There's no way this is real.

"This is a dream." She tells Glimmer. 

Her wife smiles, the barest of teeth in her grin. Adora can't look away. There's a tether to her heart and it’s drawn to her eyes. 

“Do you dream of me often?” Glimmer teases, her hand brushing over Adora’s bangs, “I’m flattered.”

Adora frowns, “Wait you’re  _ in  _ my dream.”

“Guilty is charged.” Her wife flutters her eyelashes and giggles, “Surprised? I didn’t think you’d fall asleep.”

“I didn’t think you’d wait for me to.”

Glimmer leans forward until their noses are barely touching, “Catra made me take a break. I got bored.”

  
“Bored from what?” Adora presses.

“Ah ah.” Glimmer kisses her nose. “It’s a surprise.”

“Invading my dream isn’t?”

Glimmer scoffs, “I do that regularly.” 

“Yeah.” Adora says softy. “I know.”

Glimmer squishes her cheeks with her palms. Adora sputters indignantly. It sets off a chain reaction of poking each other and giggling. Glimmer eventually gets a hold of her wrists and pins them to the bed. 

“Are you going to make this a weird dream?” Adora asks, eyebrows raised teasingly. She can’t keep a straight face at all. 

Glimmer can barely respond over how hard she’s laughing, “Can you imagine what Catra will have to listen to?”

  
It makes Adora laugh too, embarrassed and happy, “Let’s not.”

“It’s your birthday.”

“Thank you,” Adora smiles, “but I’m dying to know what the surprise is.”

Glimmer kisses her, steals her breath and her love, “Then wake up.”

.

.

“Wake up, sleepy head.”

Adora throws a pillow over her head.  _ No, Glim, come back I want to kiss you more. _

“Adora, stop flirting with my wife and wake up.” Catra must have gotten a hold of another pillow. Adora felt it  _ thunk _ on her back. “Get up.”

  
“She’s my wife too.” She mutters.

“I love her more.” Catra hits her again with the pillow. “I love both of you more. I’m far superior. Get up.”

“No.”

“Oh no tragic.” Another hit with a pillow. “Get up or I’m sending in Melog.”

Adora giggles and uses her own pillow to hit at Catra. Her wife squeals in surprise. They end up in a scuffle that lands them both on the floor in a pile of blankets. She lets Catra get the last hit in, laughing too much to care. 

“Silly.” Catra scolded, flicking Adora’s forehead. “Stop delaying the surprise.”

“I kissed Glimmer.”

“Congrats,” Catra wiggled her eyebrows, “I’m still ahead.”

“Oh my god.” Adora laughed into her pillow, “You two are-”

“I know, I know, the light of your life, the stars in your sky,  _ get up already. _ ”

Adora lets herself be dragged out of the bedroom. Her mind flashes to an older Fright Zone. Catra, younger and scruffy, is dragging her through the halls. She’s barely keeping herself up from wheezing. Adora can barely feel her lungs through her laughter. It’s a warm memory.

She blinks and her wife is smiling at her. 

  
“See something you like?” She teases. 

“Something I love.” 

Catra blushes, “Don’t be sappy. C’mon.”

She’s taken to a door she recognizes as Glimmer’s old room. She’d moved out of it after the war, stating she did not want to be making out with her girlfriends in the same room she’d wet her bed when she was a kid. It was an amusing thought. But Glimmer had this room cleaned out. It was empty. 

“What are we doing here?” 

Catra smirked at her, “You’re going to flip out.”

  
“Is it bad?” Adora frowned, “Are you guys pranking me? Wrong Hordak better not be in there, I swear to-”

“Relax.” Catra moved around her to grab her shoulders from behind. “Just take it in one at a time.”

  
“What?”

Glimmer poked her head out the door. Her face was flushed and her eyes filled with stars, “Thank goodness you brought her, I can’t handle this.”

“Shush, Glim. It’s her surprise.”

“It’s just so-” Glimmer looked close to squealing. 

  
“Shush!” Catra pushed Adora forward, “Let her in.”

‘Let her in’ was apparently code word for ‘use her as a battering ram on the door’. Glimmer was barely quick enough to open it. 

Her wife was frantically hopping from foot to foot, “Get in, get in! Don’t let them out!”

“Who out?” Adora asked.

There was a small squeak at her feet. Bewildered she glanced down and  _ oh my stars it’s a baby deer.  _ It barely reached the height of her calf. Baby brown fur, little white speckles,  _ little nose baby nose.  _ Adora felt the ground reaching for her far before her knee’s hit it. She tentatively reached out her fingers. The fawn made a  _ meh  _ noise and started nibbling on her palm.

  
“I can die now.” She said through tears. “I can die without any regrets ever.”

“Catra, I can’t handle this. She’s too cute.”

Catra was laughing. Adora ignored her wives falling apart. There was a tiny little hedgehog waddling towards her and she really, really couldn’t  _ not  _ poke it’s little nose. It  _ squeaked.  _

“Ohhh my god.” She choked out. “I’ve been blessed. Is that a puppy?”

Glimmer wiped the tears from her eyes, grinning brightly down at her, “His name is Pebbles.”

It was a small golden puppy, with a big fluffy tail and wide eyes. He was running into Adora’s lap and attacking her face with kisses before she could even comprehend this creature was named  _ Pebbles.  _ She whimpered. His fur was so soft.

“I will die for you Pebbles.” She promised. “I’ll protect you with my life.”

Catra crouched beside her. She was smiling helplessly, reaching over to wipe the tears from Adora’s eyes, “Look in the corner.”

Adora looked. She inhaled sharply, “Catra, that's a baby bunny.”

  
“Four actually.” Catra smirked, “Chocolate, Vanilla, Mint, and Rockie.”

Adora takes it all back. Stargazing with her wives? Pretty good birthday. Laying on the floor in an emotional heap while four bunnies crawled over you? The bar has been set. Nothing could top it. No matter how many times her wives laughed at her, she was enjoying this with bright eyes. 

“Happy birthday, babe.” Glimmer says after she’s got herself under control.

“This was the surprise?” Adora asks, “Baby animals?”

“Babies don’t stay babies.” Glimmer scratched the fawn behind its ear, “We had to replan the whole thing.”

Catra lounged on the floor next to her, making faces at the bunnies in her arms, “Spent three hours running around the local farms. I  _ was  _ going to get a baby cow-”

“Oh my stars.” Adora breathes. 

“-but Glimmer said we had enough.” Catra smiled, “Gotta return them by tomorrow, but I knew you’d like it.”

“Like it?” Adora scoffs, “Come here and let me show you.”

Catra wiggles her eyebrows. Adora’s giggling as she kisses her, feels Glimmer lean against her side, surrounded by  _ baby animals ohhhh my gosh,  _ and starts gushing all over again. 

“His little  _ paws,  _ look at his little  _ nose-” _

“We’ve created a monster.” Catra says. 

Glimmer grins, “Worth it.”


	17. Chapter 17

.

.

Glimmer didn’t dream often. 

She had a few gruesome nightmares during the war. Most of them were about her mother, some about her friends. She remembers she used to dream before those. Before she got fully invested in the conflict her mother wanted to keep her from. She used to dream of lilacs and gummy frogs and trees that sang old folk songs. 

She hasn’t had a dream in a long time. 

She likes to call them invasions. Her own little  _ dream raid.  _ It makes her feel mischievous. She likes doing it. She can wink out and let her magic tug her where her heart wants. She’ll end up in Catra’s dream surrounded by a horde of kittens and a very embarrassed wife telling her to  _ go away.  _

Adora’s dreams are sweeter. Glimmer feels like she’d get a cavity if she steps into them too often. Her wife dreams of simple things. Finished paperwork, relaxing on a sunny day, growing up in Brightmoon instead of the Fright Zone, falling in love. 

It’s tooth rotting. It makes Glimmer so very fond of her girl. Her  _ girls,  _ because Catra will sometimes have the gall to dream up an exquisite five course meal with moody candlelight and rose petals and has the nerve to say  _ I’ve been waiting for you.  _ She loves them both so much. 

She wishes her dreams were as sweet. She knows they get nightmares. She can help, she can save them from these small things. She feels like a hero in those moments. But they aren’t  _ her _ dreams. No one can save her from her dreams.

She learns this the hard way. 

When her feet land her in front of the sword of power, her immediate thought is Adora. The sword is surrounded by bramble and leaves. It’s untouched. The dust of time settles thickly over it. She reaches for it instinctively. 

The sword  _ hisses,  _ “Don’t touch me.”

Glimmer recoils, “What? How did you-”

  
  
“Don’t come  _ near  _ me.” The sword continues in a voice foreign to her. “All you do is bring sadness and anger. That’s all you  _ do. _ ”

“Uh, okay, first of all.” Glimmer frowns, “I’m not listening to a sword that should be shattered. Second of all? You’re not the boss of me. I don’t do those things.”

The sword is growling. It’s making the trees darker and the moonlight sinister. It makes Glimmer reconsider sassing the relic of She-Ra. 

“Okay, sparkles.” The sword says in a new voice and, okay, now they’re playing dirty. This one  _ hurt.  _ “Keep telling yourself that. Make sure to take a good long look in the mirror when you kiss me again.”

“Using Catra’s voice isn’t helping you.” She snaps. “I’m not falling for this. Get out of my head.”

“I killed your mom.” Catra’s voice continues to croon. “Attacked Brightmoon, hurt your friends. I hurt Adora too. So much. Those scars? They make you so mad.”

Glimmer rubbed a hand down her face. She would not get agitated at her own dream. She would not, this was already ridiculous. She loved Catra. There wasn’t a doubt in her mind. Sure, it was ripping open old wounds, but that’s all they were. 

“Are you done yet?” She asks dryly. “I married this woman. I’m  _ in love  _ with this woman. Nothing you say or do can change that.”

“Then you're an idiot.”

Glimmer whirls on her feet. She’s looking at herself. It’s odd. She’s younger, her hair more wild. She looks like a woodland sprite instead of a future queen. She looks abnormal in the shadows of the Whispering Woods. 

Her younger self is bristling, fury in every tear in her eyes, “You’ll let them do what they want? After all they’ve done? Catra, Entrapta,  _ Hordak?” _

“They’re doing community services.” She rebukes. “It hasn’t been easy. Did you think this was going to be easy?”

Her younger self startles, “What?”

Glimmer let’s those older memories crowd her. Memories of a fresh rebel eyed Catra, too skittish and worried. She remembers long nights helping the local villages. She remembers watching her girlfriend sigh at the stars, eyes thousands of miles away. 

“It wasn’t easy.” She murmurs, “Everyone got hurt. No one walked away from this without something weighing them down. You’re right. They’ve done a lot of bad things.”

“So  _ why-”  _ Her younger self whimpered. 

It’s the memories of starry nights that have Glimmer smiling. It’s Catra leaning her head on her shoulder-  _ I couldn’t have done this without you-  _ and crushes and longing and wistful glances. Catra, who cautiously introduces the village chef to her own cake recipe. It’s the both of them, Catra and Glimmer, who sit down with the village for supper and the crowd  _ compliments her.  _

Catra had cried. She remembers that, down to shushing her and wiping her tears and trying to figure out her developing feelings. To a cat nestled into her side for the night and whispering secrets and promises.

It spelled itself out in a broken,  _ “I don’t deserve this.” _

She looks at her younger self and places a hand on her head. She can feel the dark shadows of her mind underneath her palm, the twitching spasm of anger whenever her mother is brought up. She sighs and leans her forehead against her own. 

  
“Why?” Her younger self sniffles, “Why?”

Glimmer smiles, “Because I love them. I don’t need a reason to, I just do. Adora is my sun, Catra is my moon. That’s all I need in this world.”

The dream before her dissipates like dust in the wind. She wiggles her fingers, the faint trace of sparkles in the air. It’s odd and uncanny. It’s total darkness.

“Well, at least it’s quiet.” She grumbles.

She blinks and she’s proven that it’s not a dream. The halls around her are written in a dead language, each marking lighting up an eerie green. It’s a nightmare gored into her mind. She knows these halls very well. 

“Take care of the princess.”  _ His  _ voice hums in the darkness. “Don’t make too much of a mess.”

Footsteps. Heavy footsteps that echo through the corridors. It rattles Glimmer who has to grip a wall for support. A golden light appears and for a moment, one small moment she thinks Adora has done it. One of her wives had managed to dream raid. 

The light turns green. 

It’s Adora but it’s not. The sword of She-Ra gleams in her hand. It drags on the floor, an inky trail of green left behind it. Green scars litter Adora’s arms. They freckle over her face. Adora’s eyes are sea’s of green. It’s terrifying. 

“Adora-” Glimmer starts, out of breath, too afraid, “Adora,  _ stop-” _

“Move it, princess!” 

Catra makes her appearance- a younger Catra, with long hair and a horde mask framing her head- and crouches in front of Glimmer. The action alone knocks the breath out of her. She remembers standing in a teleporter and Catra sobbing her eyes out, fighting against clones and  _ I'm sorry! I’m sorry for everything! _

“Catra!” Glimmer cries, “Catra, stop, she’s not herself, please don’t-”

“No one else can do it.” Catra snaps, glancing over her shoulder. A lone blue eye stares Glimmer down wistfully, “Go have a nice life, princess.”

“Catra,  _ no-” _

Catra leaps. Adora wobbles and raises the sword up. Glimmer can see the battles. She can see every time these two faced each other, every moment they cried over it. She feels her stomach grow ice that  _ this is it, no more battles, it’s over.  _

Catra misses.

She-Ra’s sword makes a graceful arc in the air. Glimmer is frozen. Catra is on the floor, clutching her chest and  _ screaming.  _ The green light pulses in an ugly way. Adora steps over the broken girl on the floor-  _ that’s your wife Adora, that’s your Catra!-  _ and is walking towards Glimmer. 

“Okay.” The princess sobs. “Okay, I’m done now.”

Adora keeps her march towards her, like a marionette without strings. It’s unnerving. The sword is being lifted above her head. Glimmer shudders. The magical power in the air was crushing her. 

  
“Quit it!” Glimmer shrieks, her own magical power bursting forth like a broken dam, “Quit it, stop,  _ stop!” _

Her dream doesn’t end. It disperses with a muffled wail, something animalistic dying with it. Glimmer keeps her hands covering her eyes. She can feel her limbs shaking. The inky darkness around her is too cold. Her heart was in splinters. She needed to see her girls.

Catra wasn’t dreaming, but Adora was. She hesitates to leap, but she doesn’t want to wait for the next thing her mind can conjure up. She’s jumping over before she can stop herself. 

She trips on a plushie. 

Glimmer feels like she’s been punched in the head the minute she takes in her surroundings. It’s the shop she takes Adora to sometimes, the very same one she used to visit with her mother. The necklace she bought Adora is still in their room somewhere. The toys of the shop were in disarray, many knocked off their shelves. It’s absurd the difference this dream had compared to the nightmare she was just in. It’s bright and calm.

She finds Adora kicking her feet in a pile of plushie unicorns. Her wife had one of Bow’s tablets in her hand, her tongue poking out in concentration as she drew small shapes with her finger. The sight of her, carefree and unpossessed, had Glimmer sobbing. 

Adora raised her head in alarm, eyes zeroing in on Glimmer, “What? Glim, you’re here? What’s wrong?”

“I’m-” She sniffles, can’t make words pass the emotions clogging her throat. She takes a weak step forward. She loses her balance and falls.

Adora catches her, “Hey, I’m here. Tell me what’s wrong.”

She opens her mouth but all that comes out is a string of nonsensical babble and crying. The terror is still pounding in her chest. The relief of being in Adora’s arms, to be held and gently rocked, is overwhelming.

Adora pets her hair and it feels nice, “You’re scaring me, Glim. What happened?”

“Nightmare.” She chokes out. “Bad one.”

Adora  _ mmm’s  _ into her hair, her lips pressing gently on her forehead. It distracts Glimmer from nasty thoughts. She sees a whole lot less green in her vision and realizes she’s looking at the red of Adora’s nightshirt. She can hear Adora’s heartbeat. 

“Wanna talk about it?” Adora murmurs. 

“You got chipped.” Glimmer exhales, shakily reaching up to loop her fingers around Adora’s neck. Bare skin, no ship. Adora’s hands are reaching up to twine with hers, bringing her hands back into her lap. She gives her knuckles a parting kiss. 

“Never happened.” Adora reassures. “We freed Catra. I defeated Horde Prime.”

Glimmer breathes in and out, “Yeah, I know. It was just- I dunno it-”

“Scared you.” Adora rubs her back comfortingly. “I’m sorry. Do you want to wake up?”

“Kinda.”

“Then let’s go.” Adora smiles at her. “Catra should be here.”

Glimmer kisses her. She tastes magic,  _ Adora,  _ and can’t tell if she’s crying or not. She blinks awake gazing in two blue crystals. Adora blinks back at her, smiling with all teeth. 

“Hey you.” She says fondly, “There’s my girl.”

Well,  _ now  _ she’s crying. Glimmer sniffles and buries her head into Adora’s shirt again. Melog  _ brrrt’s  _ at the end of the bed, the mane of blue lighting up the room in electric colors. The noise has her other wife stirring, a sleepy beheaded Catra rising from the grave with a colossal yawn.

“It’s not dawn.” She mumbles sleepily. “What’s goin’ on?”

Glimmer pitifully reaches a hand out to her. Catra slowly blinks, the daze of sleep clearing a little as she takes her hand. Glimmer drags her wife into the cuddle pile, lets another pair of arms wrap around her and melts. 

Catra nuzzles her head into her neck. “Mmm what happen’?”

“Glim had a nightmare.” Adora whispered, her thumb running sweet circles over Glimmer’s jaw. “She’s a little scared right now.”

“Yeah.” Catra drowsily huffed. “Glim, your heart is going nuts. Take a deep breath, baby.”

Glimmer does. It’s less shaky on the exhale. It satisfies Adora, who gives her a playful peppering of kisses over her face. It makes Glimmer smile. The caresses on her jaw and Catra’s slow exhales on her neck are making her eyelids heavy. Sleep is calling her back, bit by bit. 

“I’m exhausted.” She says. "But I don't want to sleep."

“I’ll stay up.” Adora promises. “Just in case. I think Catra fell asleep.”

Catra hums but doesn’t deny it. Glimmer snuggles deeper into the blanket. She feels safer, calmer, happy. 

“Thank you.” She whispers. “I don’t know what I would do without you two.”

Adora smiles, "I was about to say the same thing."


	18. Chapter 18

.

.

Families were odd. 

Back in the Fright Zone, she wouldn’t even give her old team that title. Catra, as a cadet and even before that, felt disconnected from those relations. She gave Adora a hell of a time when they were growing up because the blonde kept  _ coming back.  _ It aggravated her because it made her chest warm and funny. Thus led to her bullying Adora a bit and Adora thinking she was the funniest thing since Kyle accidentally ingesting rations through his nose. 

Even when she was aware of her growing crush, she didn’t think of Adora as family. Her mind circles the topic of Shadow Weaver like a caged tiger, pacing agitatedly at the memories. There were so many memories of that woman that hurt, so many where Adora was the favored one and Catra was left out,  _ discarded.  _

But there were a few moments. She greedily held them to her chest, the way Shadow Weaver would pat her cheek or the simple dry praise of ‘you did well’ being just enough. Looking back on those memories hurt. Her conflicted emotions couldn’t find a middle ground between grief and anger. 

“Was Shadow Weaver like a mom to you?” She dared to ask her wife. 

Adora had looked at her blandly, “No.”

Which only made Catra  _ more  _ confused because she absolutely should not be hung up over something that wasn’t even an issue. Adora did not crave Shadow Weavers attention like she had. The blonde probably was up to her nose in cadet-ego and had likely been treating the whole thing like Shadow Weaver was her supervisor or something. 

It made Catra groan. Why couldn’t Adora get saddled with the mom issues? Catra would take existential issues in a heartbeat. 

“That’s mean.” Her wife frowned at her. “You don’t know how I feel about those things. I have no idea how you feel about your own problems and hurts. I can help, but I can’t help if you’re just comparing us and putting yourself down.”

“Sorry.” Catra instinctively replied, “I’m sulking.”

Adora smiled amusedly, “You don’t have to. I’m right here.”

And then they’d end up in a cuddle pile. She really hoped that was the end of it. She didn’t need to have ghosts following her. But Glimmer could smell mommy issues like a bloodhound. It’s the same issue she’s very familiar with. Catra really shouldn’t have been surprised when her wife appeared before her in smug glory, wielding a fishing pole like a weapon.

“Vacation time.” She said. “Let’s go out to the lake!”

“But you don’t even  _ like  _ fishing.”

“Who said I didn’t?” Glimmer blinked widely, fooling no one, “Hurry up and get ready. Adora is waiting.”

Her wife is acting strange, but she lets herself be dragged out. They find Adora at the gates of the castle. She’s not alone. 

King Micah stands beside her wife with an awkward smile, “Ready to go girls?”

Catra stares. 

The king had changed from his formal robes that were so familiar. He was wearing high water boots and overalls, several fishing poles over his shoulder. He’d even trimmed his beard for the occasion. He looked ridiculous.

“What.” Catra said. She was beyond words. 

“My dad’s coming too!” Glimmer smiles at her and it’s devious. “We haven’t spent some time with him in awhile. It’ll be fun!”

Adora shifts on her feet, hands in her pockets and looking far too amused to  _ not  _ be in on the joke here. It was a conspiracy, Catra was sure. She’d fallen into some wild scheme. 

Catra huffs, “Whatever.”

It’s a walking adventure. Glimmer leads the way, rambling about all her childhood memories involving fishing. They were unsurprisingly sparse. Still, her wife kept talking and Adora would ask a question and Glimmer would answer. It made Catra realize she wasn’t being inclusive. 

“Uh,” She coughs, “Why fishing?”

Glimmer grins at her over her shoulder, “Why not? It always made my mom so mad when I came home covered in mud.”

  
“Now that I think about it.” Micah murmured, “I only ever mentioned I was going fishing, I never said  _ we.” _

Adora laughed, “Oh man, how did you survive Glim.”

“By being a little hellion, what else?” Micah ruffles his daughter's hair. Glimmer bats at his hand with a playful giggle. Catra watches the interaction. There’s a feeling turning in her gut that she can’t identity. It makes her uneasy. 

They arrive at the lake. It’s so obviously a Brightmoon lake, Catra notes tiredly. The shimmering waters, reflected pink and purple in the sun. The very surface of it seems to vibrate. Trees around the lake are bent low towards the water, vines and branches dipping into the crystal blue. 

“We’re not gonna fish up, like, a magical fish here are we?” Catra eyed the waterline suspiciously, “Mermista won’t flip out right?”

“Nah.” Glimmer waves her hand, “There’s only Beobass here.”

“ _ What  _ bass?” 

Micah appeared beside her suddenly, “Want a pole?” 

Catra bristled-  _ he didn’t even teleport, it runs in the family ugh-  _ but forced herself to relax. He was giving her a sheepish smile. There was a flash of worry in his eyes. Right. He didn’t mean anything by this, he was just being nice. 

_ Calm down.  _ She breathed, “Sure.”

It immediately became clear who knew what fishing actually was when Adora got her hand mangled by a fishing hook. Glimmer had fluttered off, dragging Adora along and berating her. The blonde was taking it all in stride.

“I’ll transform and-”

“Transform over here.” Glimmer suggested, dragging her further away, “Besides I still need to yell at you-”

Catra watched them go dryly. They were still scheming, or at least Glimmer was. She doubted that was planned but her wife was too clever to let an opportunity slip. An opportunity for  _ what  _ Catra was still trying to figure out. 

Micah cleared his throat beside her, “So uh, do you need help-”

“I know how to fish.” She deadpanned then winced, “uh, sorry, I’m self taught.”

“Oh really?” He perked up, “How’d you go about learning it?”

Catra nervously wound the fishing line through the pole loops. She debated whether answering or not would be a good thing. Was it okay to talk about Horde stuff in front of the king of Brightmoon? It’s not like Adora had heaps of Fright Zone stories. 

“I got left behind a lot.” She admitted slowly. “I’d get thrown out of battle, or get lost. I got banished to the wastes for a few months. Picked up a few skills, I guess.”

“Oh.” Micah said. He didn’t look like he was expecting that. 

Catra winced and hastily tacked on, “I learned how to cook! I can cook, uhm, well I can roast salmon and I like baking-”

“That’s right!” Micah snapped his fingers, a smile returning to his face, “You made the little cakes for the wedding.”

“Yeah.” Catra relaxed a little. “Yeah, Entrapta went nuts over them.”

Micah chuckled, “You made that strawberry parfait that Glimmer is crazy about.”

The memory had Catra ducking shyly to hide her smile. It was the treat she’d made Glimmer for her birthday when it had rolled around. Glimmer hated large celebrations for her birthday and making a big deal about it. She’d grown up with her entire kingdom kissing her feet every year. Glimmer’s birthdays were usually spent camping, or holed up in their room listening to the Sound System. 

“She loved it.” Catra mumbles, “But she loves any cake you give her. Her opinion is biased.”

The king is laughing, “Don’t I know it! I remember chasing her through the kitchens, trying to get back the cookies she’d stolen.  _ Stale  _ cookies.”

And suddenly, Catra realized she was upon a gold mine. Her anxiety dissipated at the notion that she was talking to Glimmer’s  _ dad.  _ The man who raised her wife had all the black mail, all the embarrassing stories,  _ everything  _ cute and gushy about Glimmer. She almost dropped her pole in her excitement. 

“What else did she steal?” She asked. “I know Adora does it all the time, but I don’t see Glimmer doing that.”

“Oh, she used to steal,” Micha held up his fingers and ticked off one by one, “Berries, lemon cookies, a whole bowl of pineapples, hot fudge, she was really happy about grabbing the popsicles and sticking them to the walls-”

Catra wheezed, “The walls?”

"My Glimmer knows every wall in Brightmoon." Micah smirked. "And how long frozen treats can stick to them."

"Did she get away with it?"

He snorted, "No. Not until she learned to teleport. She was popping up all over the castle. Only Angella could keep up with her then."

Catra's smile dimmed. The queen was a topic that was danced around often. It rekindled old guilt. Glimmer she knew she could talk to. She didn't know about Micah.

She nervously rubbed her arm, "About that-"

"You don't have to worry."

Catra's ears perked. She glanced at the king, but he wasn't looking at her. He swung his fishing pole in an arc, the line whizzing in the air. He smiled at the water. 

"I was told what happened." He continues, "I couldn't hate you even if I wanted to. Glimmer loves you through and through. What kind of father would I be to stop that?"

It was getting very hard to blink, Catra noted. The stinging in her eyes couldn't be tears. She absolutely would not cry in front of the king.

"You've shown tremendous growth." He glances at her warmly. "My daughter wouldn't be happy without you here. And I've found you're a very sweet, caring girl. I'd be sad too, if you weren't here."

"You can't mean that." Catra chokes out. "You  _ can't. _ "

He raised an eyebrow, "Were you expecting me to hate you?"

"Yes." 

"Well." He chuckled. "That explains why you were so nervous. I'm sorry you felt that way."

Catra sniffles, her fishing pole dipping into the lake as she used her sleeve to wipe her tears. She could barely feel mortified over the stifling emotions churning in her chest. She felt like she was at a console again, typing coordinates and looking at a panicked Glimmer. She was afraid. 

Micah leaned over to help with her line, "Well, uh, I didn't mean to make you cry. Now I feel awful."

"Not crying." She mumbles.

Micah smiles, "I have something that will cheer you up."

"What?"

He pats her shoulder, "I don't mind having more than one daughter. I already consider you and Adora part of the family."

It all made sense. Glimmer being shifty, Adora in on it, Micah being awkward. They knew, from Adora likely. Catra released a tremulous sigh. Her heart was shaking, each vibration beating with memories. Scorpia, offering her hope in the Waste. Adora, fighting to save her life. Bow, gently helping her on her feet. Glimmer,  _ I trust you. _

“I don’t want to get hurt again.” She sobs. “I don’t want that. It’s too nice.”

Micah waves his hands soothingly, “It’s okay, that’s fine! I just wanted you to know, Catra. That’s how I see it.”

_ That’s how I see it,  _ he says. After she besieged Brightmoon, caused his wife to die, threw his daughter into war, and got the entire universe jeopardized.  _ That’s how I see it.  _

Catra meekly wipes her face. Micah is still looking at her, his expression open and warm. There’s a hit of that awkward tension in his face, like he isn’t sure what to do. The remnants of Beast Island show itself on him. She thinks he might see Horde remnants on her. 

But he’s here, and he’s trying, and her heart does little flips in her chest. She’s hiding her face in her collar, doesn’t dare look up, but she’s opening her arms a bit. He takes the invitation. Broad arms circle around her, rubbing up and down her back. It’s the strangest embrace she’d ever gotten. She feels small, like she’s scampering around the Fright Zone again and hiding behind crates. She sniffles again, because the hug is so warm. It feels nice.

“You don't have to-” She starts off, and stops. She bites her lip. 

Micah leans back to smile at her, “You three are very precious. I’d love to be here for you, for Adora, and for my daughter.”

“Okay.” Catra deflates, “Okay, okay.”

He looks pleased, “Thank you. For trusting me.”

“I should be saying that.” She says and they snicker at each other. 

The return trip from the lake was rowdy. Catra made as many jabs as she could at her scheming lovers. Glimmer at least looked a little sheepish about it. Adora didn’t seem to care, too enamored with Micah’s dad jokes to pay attention. 

“What do you call a lonely cheese?”

“What?”

“Provolone.”

Adora almost went into a coma with how hard she laughed.

Later on, after they’ve returned to Brightmoon, Glimmer will look at her curiously and say, “What’d you two talk about while we were gone?”

Catra thinks about the hug, about the warm feeling in her stomach and the satisfaction of hearing Micah say  _ good night girls.  _ She thinks about her family, extending day by day, it’s meaning warping with every relationship she makes. The shadows of  _ that woman  _ aren’t so severe anymore. Micah takes up a stronger presence there. It's comforting.

“Fish.” She teases. “What did you think we talked about?”

Glimmer pouts. Catra laughs. She wasn't honestly mad about it. If anything, she should be thanking her. But she had her pride to keep. She gives her wife a parting kiss on the nose before heading inside. She can barely hear Adora say _let's do that again_.


	19. Chapter 19

.

.

If Catra sneezed, Melog sneezed.

She hadn’t put much thought into it. Melog was an ancient creature with centuries over her and she was just, well. She tended to let it be. Her cat was a good companion. She’d more than once dragged Catra out of a situation she didn’t want to be in. Invisibility was nice on days she just wanted to disappear. Since the war ended, Melog hadn’t parted from her side for more than a few hours at a time. 

Melog stayed at her side when she left the rebellion, _twice._ Melog was there when she wanted to run from Shadow Weaver and would always be there. It grounded Catra, who naturally felt backed into a corner. It reassured her there was an _out._

Melog stayed with her when she got sick. It was a dewy morning. The heaviness in the air sat itself in Catra’s noise and all the noise in the room couldn’t drown out her sniffling. She laid in bed and coughed herself to sleep. All through it, Melog curled beside her purring. 

Adora chuckled, her fingers gently caressing through Catra’s hair and _stars,_ her headache was weeping with relief, “She sounds like you.”

  
“I don’t purr.” Catra mumbles.

“You do.” Glimmer says from across the room. She’d set up a makeshift table, an assortment of food and medicine on it. Catra hid her face in her pillow. Embarrassment was warm on her neck. Her girls always took illness seriously, to the doting _pampering_ degree. Glimmer called her a pillow princess. 

She wished she had the strength to shove her. 

Melog sneezed. Adora cooed, “Aww Melog. My heart. Tiny sneezes.”

“Are you seriously baby talking right now?”

Adora ignores her and kisses Melog’s snout. Her cat made a happy noise which only made Catra _more_ embarrassed. She curls under her blankets. A moment passes before there’s a touch of magic, just a breeze of it by her nose. She sneezes.

Melog sneezes too. 

“It _is_ cute.” Glimmer giggles, the source of magic crouching before her and offering a bowl. Catra’s nose twitched. It smelled delicious. “Eat up. It’s got little tuna bites in it.”

  
“Har har. Very funny.” She rolled her eyes. 

Melog sneezes again. Catra tosses a look at her cat. Melog could be mischievous if she wanted to be, but didn’t look to be paying anyone attention but Adora. The blonde was scratching behind the cat's ears and gushing over her. Was Melog’s mane a lighter color than usual? 

_Sick brain,_ Catra diagnosed. She took a bite of her soup. 

.

.

Melog was changing colors. 

Catra stayed nestled in her fort of blankets. It would be the last day of her illness, the healers had said. She’d be allowed out of bed in the morning. Her wives had promised an ice cream date. She was more concerned with her now very _pink_ alien cat sprawled on the floor. 

Catra sniffled into a tissue, “Does pink mean something?”

Melog meows out _maybe._ It makes Catra scrunch up her nose, “What, you don’t know?”

Adora pokes her head out from the bathroom, “What?”

“Go take a shower I’m not talking to you.”

“Rude.” Adora blinks. “Oh hey Melog is pink.”

_I am pink_ Melog purrs into the carpet. _I am pink._

“Uh.” Catra squints. “You okay there?”

“She’s purring.” Adora steps out into the room, “She looks happy.”

Melog kept on with the dreamy mumbles. Catra watched her cat for a little bit before deciding, yeah, she looked okay. Melog was attuned to her emotions and Catra was more than delighted to be let out of the bedroom. Maybe she was like a mood ring or something. 

“Do you think she’s like a glow stick?” Catra wondered. “If we shake her will she turn green?”

“I don’t think that’s how glow sticks work.” Adora pauses. “Also you _snap it_ you don’t shake it.”

  
“I am _not_ snapping Melog, are you crazy-”

  
“That’s not what I-”

The bedroom door swung open. Glimmer glares at them over the basket of food in her hands, “Adora stop harassing Catra.”

  
“ _What?”_ Adora huffed, “I wasn’t harassing-”

Catra smiled smugly, “Adora stop harassing me.”

“Catra, I wasn’t-”

“Catra gets a free pass because she’s sick.” Glimmer scolds playfully. “If you make her even more sick _I swear to-”_

Adora pouts, “I was just taking a shower!”

“Well you better get-”

Melog sneezes. 

It distracts Catra from the lighthearted conversation. She observes her cat, this ancient creature. Melog isn’t doing anything suspicious. The carpet was cozy. Even Adora had been found dozing away on the floor. On more than one occasion, Catra would read a book while laying back on the too fluffy carpet. 

So why was watching Melog do it, something she’s done many times before, unsettling?

Catra frowned, “Something’s wrong with Melog.”

Glimmer set the basket down on the bed. She blinked down at the cat, “Oh she’s pink.”

“No duh.”

The sound of water turning on in the bathroom barely drowned out Adora shouting, “It’s cute!”

Glimmer tilted her head, “Catra? You’re making a face.”

Catra threaded her fingers into the blankets. The pensive feeling didn’t go away, but Melog didn't look bothered. Her cat was making those little tiny mumbles into the carpet. Adora was right, _it was cute,_ but seeing the pink threw it all off. It reminded her she knew next to nothing about Melog. 

“Can we,” She chewed on her words slowly, “go to a library tomorrow instead?”

Glimmer looked surprised, “A library? Really?”

“Yeah.” Catra exhaled. “I just want to see if it has anything.”

“Oh.” Her wife smiled softly, “Okay. We can do that.”

.

.

Tomorrow ended up with neither the library or an ice cream date. 

It ended up here, outside the healers room, pacing restlessly. It _started_ wonderfully. Catra remembers waking up without a stuffy nose and to a clear head. It was pure bliss, to be curled up unimpaired in her wife's arms. Adora’s arms were safe, secure and strong and gentle and _wow_ did it make for a nice wake up call. 

“Thank you She-Ra.” Catra mumbled, burying her head deeper into Adora’s fabulous shoulder blade- and it was a _blade_ that could pick up both her and Glimmer. “Nice.”

Glimmer poked her head up from her nest like a dazed canary after hitting a window, “Wuzzat?”

“Good morning, birdie.”

Glimmer squints, “You feelin’ better?”

Catra takes a moment to soak in the feeling of being hugged. Adora is unconscious, but Catra doubts even being in a coma would stop her wife from being cuddly. And Adora always does this _thing_ where she tries her hardest to be the last one to sleep, even if it’s a spectacular failure. It’s endearing, stupid, and makes her swoon like a gross teenager. 

“I’m feeling great.” She kisses Adora’s nose because _heck yeah._ “C’mere, I want to kiss you.”

Glimmer yawns, “Jus’ woke up, gimme like a few-”

“No. Now.”

Her princess smiles. She obliges by rolling over, her shoulder bumping Catra’s. Catra wiggles her arm out from underneath her blonde. She hooks Glimmer in, drawing her in close. Glimmer’s face has a dusting of pink. She’s leaning forward deviously. 

“What about a kiss?” Her princess asks sweetly. 

Catra smirks, “Morning breathe incoming.”

Glimmer’s eyes blow wide, “Hey, _hey no_ wait-”

The kiss is sloppy and makes Glimmer squeal against her lips. Catra can’t put much effort into it, not with how hard she’s laughing. It wakes Adora up, who makes her grand entrance into the conversation but smacking them both with a pillow.

“Too early.” Adora complains, rolling over. “Go back to- oh.”

Catra pauses at the surprise in Adora’s voice, “What?”

“Melog puked.”

Catra is scrambling out of the covers. Her eyes scan the floor and find her still _pink_ cat, laying in the same way as yesterday. There’s a pile of cat bile nearby. Was alien puke supposed to be blue? Her cat was still purring.

  
She’s leaping off the bed. She hears her wives rising behind her as she rushes to her cat’s side. Melog raises her head, face curled into a smile at her. It throws Catra off, because she was just sick herself. It wasn’t a good feeling. Certainly nothing to smile about.

“Hey.” She crouches and runs her hand along Melog’s face. “What’s wrong? I didn’t know you could get sick.”

Melog sneezes. 

A shimmer of sparks and her wife materializes beside her. Her bed head sticks up outrageously. It doesn’t hide Glimmer’s frown, “We should take her to the healers.”

“Maybe she caught what Catra had?” Adora says. “You guys are attuned to each other after all.”

“That’s true.” Catra mumbles. The uncertainty of the situation makes her tail lash. “Help me carry her.”

Twenty minutes later found the three of them where they are now. Catra paced and paced. She was sure there’d be footprints when this was done. Adora sat by the door, a tablet in her hands and muttering under her breath. Catra’s ears caught a bunch of medical texts being uttered. Glimmer was the one down the hall, conversing quietly with Bow. The archer looked just as stricken as the rest of them. 

“This just happened?” He asked. “Didn’t Catra just get sick?”

Catra huffed, “Yeah, I don’t think it’s a coincidence.”

“Melog isn’t from Etheria.” Glimmer shifted nervously on her feet, “Maybe it’s more dangerous to Melog then it is to Catra?”

“It was just a cold.” Catra points out. 

Bow opens his mouth and closes it. His face twists with worry, “But to Melog it might not be.”

Catra bristles. The waiting was starting to grate on her nerves. Couldn’t she be inside and watching? Was it rude to barge in? She was practically a princess herself, she could totally do it.

“Don’t you dare.” Glimmer is latching on to her with both hands. “I know that face, you’re about to kick that door down.”

“I was not.” Catra hisses. “I was going to _open_ the door.”

“Give the healers space, Catra.” 

“Oh, okay, I’ll just sit here and mope. Brilliant idea.” Catra pauses and rubs a hands over her face in exasperation, “Sorry, _sorry,_ ugh I really hate this.”

Bow pats her other shoulder, “We’re all pretty stressed. It’s okay to worry. I’m sure any second they’ll come out and Melog will be okay.”

Glimmer presses a feather light kiss on her cheek, “Melog can feel your emotions, remember? You’ll stress her out if you go crazy.”

Right. _Right._ She runs a hand through her hair in agitation. She could do this. It was easier to keep herself together knowing Melog was relying on her. Responsibility. _That_ was a weird feeling. 

“Catra.” Adora is waving at her from the floor, “Come here, sit with me.”

“Sitting _and_ moping.” Catra huffed but defeatedly walked over. “What an upgrade.”

Adora smiled, “Look through this.”

Catra grabs the tablet handed to her. She lets Adora lean on her shoulder as she reads through the documents. It’s old and outdated and has a lot of hieroglyphs on it. She pointed at a few and Adora translated. A calm voice in her ear did wonders for her nerves. 

The hour carried on in quiet whispers. Bow had left at some point to get them snacks. Glimmer joined them on the floor, using Catra’s other shoulder as a pillow. Catra dutifully read out loud what she could and let Adora fill in the blanks. The hollowness in her chest eased slightly. 

A gasp from down the hallway has Catra perking up. 

The healers child, Wez, was sprinting towards them. Any other time Catra would have laughed at how funny it was that all three of them shrieked as a small butterfly toddler rocket launched himself at them. Now though, she merely opened her arms and accepted his flying hug. 

“Princess!” He cried happily, “Princesses are here!”

“Hey, Wez.” Glimmer laughed, “You scared me.”

Adora snatched the tablet before it could meet its doom on the floor. The blonde ruffled his hair, “What’re you doing here?”

“Mama is here.” He pointed at the door, bouncing up and down in Catra’s lap with excitement, “Are the princesses here to save the day?”

  
“Yup.” Catra huffed, “We’re here to save the day.”

His eyes were sparkling, “Okay. Okay, okay.”

Catra felt a bit of that rocky exterior falling off at his earnesty. She reached up to tweak his nose and he giggled, playfully batting at her hands. His wings were fluttering erratically which was _funny_ because they kept hitting Glimmer in the face. Her princess was taking it well with an amused smile. 

Wez excitement fizzles a little as he looks at Catra, “Is someone sick?”

“Hmm?” Catra leans her head against the wall, “What makes you say that? We’re just...hanging out.”

Glimmer nudges her with her elbow. She ignores it. 

Wez says, “Okay, okay. I hang out too?”

“You can hang out with us.” Adora says, laughing a little at his excited gasp, “Easy there, buddy. You’re going to bruise something with all that bouncing.”

“Hanging out!” He ignores Adora and it makes Catra grin, “I’m hanging out!”

“Oh you’re hanging out, huh?” Catra smirks, “Lemme help you with that.”

She stands up, lifting the toddler into her arms. He’s outright shrieking with laughter, his arms clinging to hers as he dangles a few feet in the air. His wings beat behind him as he loops his legs around her wrists. Catra can’t stop her own laughter. 

“Hey Wez,” She says playfully, “How’s it hanging?”

“Ohhh.” Adora claps her hands, “A dad joke.”

“Ew, gross.” Catra frowns over her shoulder. “You ruined the moment.”

Glimmer's laughing so hard she almost knocks over Adora, “A _dad_ joke- oh my _gosh_ I’m-”

Catra flushed with embarrassment. Wez's laughter is the only thing stopping her from marching down the hall to escape her teasing wives. She fixed him in her arms to a safe cradle. He was clapping his hands excitedly.

“More! More!” He tugged at Catra’s shirt, “Please? More?”

“Not now, kiddo.” She ruffled his hair, “Glim is giving me a look. I think she thinks I’m going to drop you.”

“I do _not_ have a look on my face.”

Wez says, “She has a look on her face!”  
  


“See?” Catra tries to hold back her smile and knows she’s failing at it, “No faith. Unbelievable.”

Glimmer playfully huffs. There’s a flicker of pride in Glimmer’s eyes and it makes Catra warm, makes her want to bashfully hide her face. _You’re good with kids_ echoes faintly in her ears. It makes her face even more red, to remember that conversation now of all times. 

The door opening spares her an embarrassing fate. All those thoughts fly out the window as the healers step out. 

“How is she?” Catra steps forward impatiently, “Is she okay?”

One of the healers looks at Wez in her arms in exasperation. It makes her realize she’s still holding him and sheepishly sets him on the floor. Her wives join her and the verdict is given. 

  
“She only had a slight fever.” The healers inform them. “She was a little dehydrated, but will recover shortly. Given proper rest she'll be just fine.”

A _meow_ caught Catra as Melog shuffled around the healers. Her cat tilted her head back and forth merrily as she approached. It was relieving to see her mane a normal blue again. Catra was already crouching, accepting the sandpaper cat kisses to her cheek. She wrapped her arms around Melog with a sigh. 

“Don’t do that.” She mumbles. “You scared me.”

“Good to have you back, Melog.” Adora pats the cats head, “I probably don’t need to tell you Catra went nuts out here.”

_I felt that,_ Melog rumbles. 

Catra gasps, “What?! No I didn’t, I was just-”

_A good person._ Melog curls around her. _A good heart._

All protests die on Catra’s lips. She melts into the hug, feeling her wives crouch beside her. Adora’s grinning and she can hear Glimmer giggling in her ear. Her family was back together again. The hollow pit in her chest healed in an instant. 

Somehow Wez wiggles into the mass, gaping up at them with wide eyes. 

“Shiny kitty!” He cries. 

_I am very pretty._ Melog agrees.

Catra laughs.

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> thank you for 300 kudos ;----;


	20. Chapter 20

.

.

They didn’t share everything. 

Adora knew this. She doesn't mention some things that happened to her during the war. There are nights she sits alone at the stables, her only company being Swift Wind. She sometimes walks the long hallways of Brightmoon, searching for answers long gone. On the worse of days, she’ll stand in the empty halls of the crystal castle. The loneliness leaves goosebumps on her arms and memories prodding her head. 

She knows it happens with her wives as well. Catra hides often. She takes Melog with her and Adora wishes she knew where her wife goes in those hours. But it’s a clear sign  _ I want to be alone.  _ Some days Catra curls in the dark corners of the room, yellow and blue watching the room distrustfully. Adora could at least coax her out in those moments. It’s a small relief. 

Glimmer stands alone in dim light. She stares at the walls of her kingdom in a daze, constellations and patterns unreadable to all but Adora. She looks like her mother. From the long ethereal wings, the far away gaze, and the solemn cloud over her head. The blonde joins her if she finds herself awake at those times. 

“What does it say?” Glimmer whispers, eyes misty. 

Adora solemnly says, “Heart.”

They don’t share these painful moments. Adora doesn’t know what to do and can’t figure the expressions on their faces. She asks, sometimes. She doesn’t always get an answer. She’s okay with this. She doesn’t have an answer to their questions either. 

She wakes up one night alone. 

The spots beside her were cold. She lifts her head from the blankets, blinking blearily into the darkness of their room. No eyes in the corner, no door left ajar. They were both missing. 

Adora rubs her face. A part of her wants to go back to sleep. Obviously there was a reason they hadn’t woken her up. A larger, more concerned part of her, felt left out. She rolled out of bed gracelessly. Her bare feet padded against the floor as she crept to the door. 

She stubbed her toe. 

“Ouch!” She slapped her hands over her mouth and whimpered, hopping on one foot, “Ow, ow, ow.”

“Mrrr?” 

Adora looked down. Laying in the hallway was a familiar glowing blue. Melog nudged her knee and she reached down to pet her. 

“Hey.” She greets quietly. “They didn’t take you?”

A shake of the head  _ no.  _

Adora purses her lips. That meant they weren’t trying to hide. They probably didn’t want to wake her up. Maybe it was a midnight kitchen run? That sounded cute. Much more preferable to the scenarios in her head where her wives were crying somewhere. 

She shivered, “Hey, Melog?”

“Mmmnn?” Melog tilted her head.

Adora smiled, “Take me to them, please?”

The Sound System had been left on in the night. Soft flutes followed invisible footsteps through the halls of Brightmoon. Adora let Melog guide her. She didn’t want to stub her toe again. She watched the constellations on the wall pass by in melancholy. The quietness unnerved her. 

Melog led her away from the kitchens. The further they went from anything familiar made Adora jumpy and nervous. Even invisible, she felt someone would pop out and accuse her of doing something she shouldn’t. 

_ Calm down.  _ She rubbed her arm.  _ Calm down.  _

Melog stopped in front of a door and pawed at it. Adora obligingly slid it open, tip toeing out into the frigid night air. She immediately curled in on herself. The wind was biting her skin. Her pajamas didn’t make much of a cover from it. Melog nudged her again and she hopped out into the Brightmoon gardens, rubbing her arms with chattering teeth. 

A faint  _ ping  _ of magic drew her attention. It was a familiar magic, etched into her memories like a song stuck in her head. She followed it, the grass tickling her feet and the trees brushing her hair. Deeper into the gardens she went, until the magic was accompanied by shouts. 

Adora tensed.  _ Are they in danger?  _

She hid behind a tree, feeling Melog sit at her feet patiently. She felt a little foolish for hiding while invisible, but her anxiety was making her jumpy again. She peeked out. 

It was her wives. Thankfully,  _ just  _ the two of them. Adora let herself relax a bit before frowning in confusion. 

Glimmer stood in the moonlight, rings of pink spells hissing in the night. Her wife was bruised and battered, her teeth gritted fiercely into a snarl. Adora hadn’t seen such an expression on her face since the war. It looked misplaced on her princess when she was just in her pajamas. 

Catra looked only slightly better in comparison. There were some noticeable scorch marks on her sweats and she was rubbing her shoulder tenderly, but otherwise unharmed. Her expression was neutral, blank, almost devoid of emotion. 

Glimmer’s rings  _ sparked  _ and Catra moved, backflipping out of the way of an electric ray of light. She landed into a handstand, using the momentum to propel herself forward. Glimmer teleported away before Catra got close. From the dust, three more spell rings erupted into showers of pink fire. Catra prowled through it without a scratch. 

Adora couldn’t pick her jaw off the floor.  _ What am I looking at? _

She glanced down at Melog. The cat was still a cool blue, content to lick her paw on the ground. With her attuned to Catra, she had expected a feral red. If Melog was calm, so was Catra. 

_ Just a spar?  _ Adora stares at their wounds worriedly.  _ It doesn’t look like it. _

She was tempted to barge in and demand answers. Obviously they were upset and obviously they were hurting. The worry in her heart was screaming to help them. She could barely take a step forward before Glimmer gave a war cry. 

The princess was back, rapidly teleporting around Catra and delivering what she could in jabs and kicks. Catra blocks and weaved, her ears swiveling to find what she couldn’t see. It looked like a dance. Adora winced at a few good blows that weren't deflected properly. Those were going to bruise. 

_ This has to stop.  _ She narrows her eyes.  _ I’m stopping this right- _

“Stop.” Catra catches Glimmer’s fist in her hand. “Stop it. Glim,  _ stop.” _

“Don’t  _ tell  _ me to stop, I’m still-” Glimmer hisses and wrenches her hand from Catra, “Again. Let’s go again.”

Catra stares blankly. Adora has known that look all her life. She’d wear it around Shadow Weaver, Hordak, even Adora when they have to make uneasy truces. It looks worse in the shadows of the stars, weariness painted under her eyes. 

“Glim.” Catra’s voice is softer. “You can’t beat me.”

Glimmer had been leaning on her staff, but rose up with fire in her eyes, “I’m not done yet.”

There’s a twirl of pink mist. Adora rubs her eyes, trying to find her wives in the mess. The magic is too thick to see through. She hears shouting, more bursts of magic flickering around her, and the hissing of metal. She grips the tree tightly. 

_ What do I do?  _ She bites her lip.  _ Transform? Would that make this worse?  _

There’s a  _ thud  _ and someone’s cry of pain. Adora feels ice up her spine and it’s only Melog tripping her feet that stops her from running out into the battle. The silence in the mist unnerves her. 

The moonlight clears it away. Glimmer lays on the ground, breathless and cradling her arm to her chest. Catra crouches over her legs, boxing in Glimmer with no chance of escape. 

“I won.” Catra’s whisper barely carries over the wind.

“Let’s go again.” Glimmer said, her voice tight with pain. “Just give me a minute. I’ll be fine.”

Catra is quiet. She sits down on Glimmer’s legs, her face still as blank as ever. Her eyes betray nothing as she leans forward until their foreheads touch. 

Glimmer makes a wounded noise, “Catra, please-”

“Aren’t you tired?” Catra asked gently. “You’re strong, Glim. You don’t need to beat me to prove that.”

“I just-” Her wife made a strangled noise, a sob caught in her words, “I just have to know. I  _ need  _ to know if I could have prevented something,  _ anything. _ ”

Catra doesn’t say anything. She tilts her head and says something soft, too soft for Adora to hear. Glimmer sniffles, leaning into Catra who accepts her into a warm embrace. 

“How’s the arm?” Catra asks, “I got you pretty bad.”

“It’s fine.” Glimmer mumbles, “It’s bleeding a little. I, stars Catra, I’m such a-”

“Hey, shush. I’m the one who agreed to this.” Catra brushed Glimmer’s hair behind her ear. “If you’re gonna call yourself names, you’re lumping me in with you. Don’t do that.”

Glimmer huffed, “I’m not, I’m just- I’m  _ sorry,  _ you shouldn’t have to-”

“I agreed to, Glim.” 

“That doesn’t mean you’re happy about it.”

“No.” Catra agreed solemnly, pressing a kiss to the princess’s forehead, “No I’m not.”

Glimmer hiccuped and buried her head into Catra’s shirt. A few soothing words were uttered between them, sweet kisses stealing away tears. Eventually, they helped each other to their feet. 

“No training tomorrow.” Catra murmured, running her fingers over Glimmer’s arm. “Let it heal.”

_ I can heal it.  _ Adora pouted.  _ I can help.  _

“Okay.” Glimmer agreed, rubbing her eyes, “Walk me to bed?”

Catra rolled her eyes, “We share the same bed, sparkles.”

“That’s scandalous.”

“We’re  _ married. _ ”

“At least take me to dinner first.”

Catra mumbled something and Glimmer laughed. The tension had dissolved as the two made their way back through the garden, towards Brightmoon. Catra had her arm wrapped around Glimmer’s shoulders, the princess leaning into her side. It was cute and completely opposite of the energy not even two minutes ago. 

Adora blinked dumbly at the open space in front of her. 

“Did that just happen?” She hissed to Melog. 

Melog rumbled something in return. Probably something happy and endearing. If only Adora could understand  _ alien cat.  _

Adora stared.  _ Why don’t I know about these secret training nights?  _

The wind brushed her skin harshly, reminding her she was outside in her pajamas in the middle of the night. She shivered, leaning closer to Melog. The garden had scorch marks and grooves from battle, but some looked older than others. Just how long had this been going on? 

The walk back to Brightmoon is stiff. She gets lost a few times, Melog following her sedately as if this was an evening stroll. Her thoughts are too crowded to make sense of where she’s walking. 

She knew they kept secrets from each other. She just didn’t think she’d be the odd one out in this scenario. She kinda thought it’d been a one man army kinda thing until now. Catra dealt with her problems, Glimmer had her own as well, and Adora would remedy herself as best as she could. 

She hadn’t expected two to be in on a secret and not her. And what was the reason? Were they worried she’d be mad? Well, she kind of is, but that’s only because they didn’t tell her. Maybe. Possibly. She’s still sorting that out.

“I can’t think.” She says out loud, right before she runs smack into the door. 

Melog laughs. She shoots the cat a grumpy look over her bruised nose. 

The halls of Brightmoon are much comfier to walk on than grass. Without the wind freezing her to the bone, it’s comfortable enough that she’s steering herself towards the kitchen before she could second guess herself. And it created a good alibi. 

She paused. 

“Should I…” She winced, “Should I bring it up?”

Melog tilted her head. 

“It’s just, well.” Adora rubbed her cheek nervously. “I’m mad, yeah, duh,  _ I’m really mad  _ but, they have to have a reason right? And I totally eavesdropped. Would they be mad about that?”

Melog meowed. 

Adora helplessly pats her head, “Thank you for the advice.”

She stewed over her thoughts as she crept along the kitchen. She’d snuck in here so many times that with the help of Melog, it was practically childs play. 

“What’s good comfort food?” She opens a cupboard up. “Strawberries?”

Melog is biting a cereal box. 

Adora nods sagely, “Good choice.”

And that’s how she finds herself in Brightmoon’s kitchen in the middle of the night, a bowl of soggy cereal in front of her and, because Melog was such a trooper, a bowl in front of her as well. Melog had given hers a dainty sniff before pawing the bowl further away on the table. 

Adora mournfully let her spoon drop into the bowl. Picked it up. Dropped it. Picked it up again. Dropped it.

Melog meowed. 

Adora sighed, “I know, I know. I shouldn’t be sulking. I can’t help it! I feel left out.”

A rumble.

“Yeah, I should probably talk to them about it.” Adora mumbles. “But they didn’t for a reason, right? I mean, it’d have to be a pretty good reason. A big reason. Groundbreaking.”

A soft purr. 

Adora flicked a grain of cereal off the table, “Okay. You got me. I’m scared there is no reason. I’m upset they might be hiding this from me because- I don’t know!”

She drags her hands down her face, “I love them Melog. If I drive myself nuts over this, am I just showing that I don’t trust them?”

Melog hums. 

“Should I just,” She makes a vague gesture with her hand, “Let it be? But that’d be lying, I don’t want to lie.”

She pauses. 

“Okay and I might be scared they’ll flip out if I bring it up.”

Melog gives a happy whistle before swiping her bowl off the counter. It shatters to the floor, the sound sparking in Adora’s ears. She stares dryly down at the mess before dropping her face into her arms. 

“Or that. You could do that. That works.”

There’s hurried footsteps coming down the hall. The blonde winces, carefully extracting herself from the chair and sneaking towards to exit. Melog trots behind her, a fountain of calm as they escape the kitchen staff’s exclamation of surprise. 

She made her way back to the room in a sulk. Her hands were tucked under her arms and her eyes trained on her feet. The bedroom door was an almost unwelcome surprise. 

She exhales.  _ Here goes nothing. _

She’s barely opening the door before a pillow is pelting the wall next to it. She yelps, almost closing the door in a panic. A hand is gripping it before she can and she’s greeted to two catlike eyes in the darkness. 

“I know that’s you.” Catra says. “We heard something break from all the way over here. What’d you do?”

Adora can’t speak. The appearance of her wife was so abrupt. In her mind, she’d hoped they’d gone to sleep. She should’ve known they’d see the empty bed and wait. 

So she blurts out, “What’d  _ you  _ do?”

“Huh?” Catra huffs, “What’s with the attitude?”

“Catra, is that Adora?” A voice calls from inside the room, “Let her in already.”

“She’s invisible.” 

“What?”

Adora takes a step back. Catra hears it, her ears twitching in the dark. Blue and yellow are settling on her spot with intensity. 

“Hey.” She says, her voice an octave lower, “What gives? Why aren’t you dropping the invisibility?”

Adora’s throat feels dry. She flexes her fingers, wondering if she should just come out and say it. Maybe it wasn’t that big of a deal? And Catra will laugh about it and Glimmer will call her a dummy and they’d all cuddle in bed again. It didn’t sound ideal, Adora realized. She didn’t want to be the fool here. 

“I’m gonna-” She stops, because her voice is too sharp and she sees Catra flinch, “Sorry, sorry. I’m in a bad mood.”

“Okay.” Catra draws out cautiously. “Why don’t you come inside?”

“Adora.” Glimmer’s head is popping up underneath Catra’s arm, “Hey you- oh. She’s gone.”

“Invisible.”

“I knew that.” Glimmer huffed, “Adora?”

Adora mumbled, “Still here.”

“Come inside.” Her wife was giving her puppy eyes, “Please?”

She exhales. If she walked inside now, she’d be accepting their secret. She’d be living every night knowing they were going out and getting hurt. And she’d end up in the kitchens, lonely and exhausted. 

_ Sometimes.  _ She rubs her eyes tiredly.  _ Sometimes you just gotta rip the bandaid off.  _

“I saw you two tonight.” She whispers.

It’s dark and she can’t see them very well, but she notices the way Glimmer shifts uncomfortably. Catra doesn’t move from the doorway. Her wife doesn’t even look affected by the statement. 

Adora forges on with all the will of a lamb, “What were you two doing fighting like that?”

“It was-” Catra is cut off by a sharp nudge from Glimmer.

“Don’t lie to Adora for me.” Her princess murmurs, “Thank you, but you don’t deserve that.”

Catra looks pained. It makes Adora’s stomach curl and she’s taking another step back before she realizes that might be a bad idea. Her wives looks a little panicked now. 

“Adora, hold on.” Catra hisses. “Let Glim explain.”

“Come inside.” Glimmer reaches her hand out, wiggling her fingers invitingly, “Please? I promise I’ll tell you everything.”

It’s a sincere offer. It eases the tension in her shoulders. She feels a little embarrassed now, meekly reaching forward and threading her fingers with her wife’s. Glimmer’s smile sparkles in the dark. 

“Sorry.” Adora mumbles. “I’m being a brat.”

“Get in line.” Glimmer tugs her in. “And drop the invisibility.”

Melog happily obliges. Adora barely is able to see her own arms in front of her before she’s being dragged down. The constellations of their blankets cushion her fall. She blinks up at her wife.

Glimmer smiles down at her, “You scared me, you know.”

“Huh?”

“You probably know where we were,” Glimmer is leaning back to rub her arm, a patch of gauze sticking out from under her sleeve, “but we came back and you were gone. We thought you might be at the kitchens, but Melog was gone too.”

  
“You never take Melog.” Catra mumbles, taking a spot next to them on the bed.

“Oh, well.” Adora fumbles for words. “I woke up and you two were gone. I went looking for you.”

“Found us dueling?” Glimmer guessed.

“Sparring.” Catra corrects.

“Dueling sounds cooler.”

“I found you crying.” Adora mumbles, the cheerfully air dissipating. “Catra looked sick. You both looked unhappy.”

They don't say anything. 

Adora grimaces, “I just want to know why you didn’t tell me.”

“I’m selfish.” Glimmer murmurs. “I know She-Ra can heal us, I know that. And I know you’d do  _ everything  _ to make it better. That’s how you are. And that’s what I’m afraid of.”

“What?" Adora frowns, “I don’t-”

“I never beat Catra.” Glimmer continues on, softer then before and something vulnerable in her voice, “I never beat Shadow Weaver, never beat Hordak, I never beat Horde Prime. I couldn’t protect either of you when it really mattered. What if something like that happens again? What if I’m the one you two are counting on and I just can’t do it?”

Adora stares up at her princess in surprise. 

Glimmer smiles back, “And I can already see it in your head. You’d tell me I’m strong already, I could easily beat them now, how great I am. You’d make me feel better and I don’t want to.”

“Glim-” Adora leans up, terrified, “Glim  _ stop _ -”

“I just-” Her wife sighs shakily, “I want to be someone you two can rely on. I don’t want to be the one you always have to save.”

Catra whispers, “I told her she was nuts.”

“You still agreed to it.” Glimmer says. 

“Because your second option was  _ Hordak. _ ”

Adora chokes, nearly knocking her head against Glimmer’s, “Glim, please, hold on a second.”

“Okay.” Glimmer deflates. “Say your piece.”

Adora opens her mouth, closes it, and feels a rush of  _ what the heck is going on  _ and falls back onto the bed with a groan. She throws her arm over her eyes. A headache was starting to build behind her temples. 

No. The problem was her wife felt she wasn’t  _ amazing  _ and she was not about to let that go.

“Glim,” She breathes, “I love you.”

Glimmer sniffles, “Adora don’t you dare-”

“You showed me She-Ra.” Adora continues, “You showed me so many wonderful things. You taught me love can be sweet, and sometimes it stings. I look at the moon and all I think about is you.”

“You're so unfair.” Glimmer cries, weakly wiping her tears. “I hate this.”

“If I’m not allowed to lie, neither are you.” Catra murmurs, leaning over to kiss Glimmer’s cheek, “You had it coming.”

Glimmer sulkily glares at her, “Traitor.”

“Old news.”

Adora laughs softly, “Glim, there’s no one in the universe I trust as much as you. You don’t have to have She-Ra strength to earn that.”

Glimmer holds it together for a moment more before dissolving into tears. She leans forward, her lips brushing over Adora’s face with whispered apologizes. Adora hums happily, her earlier apprehension lifted. 

“Thank you for telling me.” She whispers.

Glimmer leans back to smile fondly at her, “I should be asking you to forgive me but you're thanking me. Unbelievable.”

“And hogging Adora.” Catra huffed, shoving Glimmer’s shoulder. “Move it, princess.”

“Technically you're a princess too.”

“Don’t care.”

Adora laughs, turning her head into the blankets to hide from Catra. Her wife mischievously kisses her ear and it only makes her laugh harder. She blindly reaches up and curls her fingers through short hair. Catra hums happily against her hand. 

“I saw you.” Adora murmured. “Are you feeling okay?’

Catra huffed, “Don’t coddle me. I’m fine.”

“Okay.” Adora paused. “But only if I can come too.”

Glimmer blinked at her, “What? To train?’

“No.” Adora loops her other arm around Glimmer’s neck, “To heal.”

And Glimmer smiles, happy tears shining in her eyes. She leans forward and Adora is melting. The kiss is sweet and electric and ends too soon, because Catra shoved Glimmer. 

“Seriously. Move over.”

“Wait your turn!” 

Adora almost falls off the bed with how hard she laughs. 


	21. Chapter 21

.

.

Glimmer would not ruin this. 

Well, hah, it was already pretty ruined, wasn’t it? It was supposed to be a normal Date Mission, completely safe and absolutely nothing wrong ever happening. And then they found  _ the planet.  _ Not just any planet. Eternia. Well, the shadow of it. Copy? Fake?

Entrapta happily dubbed it  _ Wrong Eternia.  _

Anyway, they found it again. Which really shouldn’t have been a problem. Just fly on by and wave as it fades in the rearview mirror. No problems. 

Except someone (read: Entrapta) decided Wrong Eternia did not have sufficient data and  _ needed _ to be examined, this instant. Which required Darla to turn 180 degrees on the spot and jump it back to Etheria. Just to pick up Entrapta. 

Which. Okay. At this point Glimmer was ready to just have a normal date and leave Darla in Entrapta’s capable hands. She was miffed and not good company right now. In a closed space? She’s a bomb waiting to go off. 

And then Adora asked, “Can I go too? I want to see more of my home world. Or, whatever version this is of it.”

“Sure!” Entrapta clapped her hands, “I already have a co-pilot, but you’re welcome aboard!”

“Co-pilot.” Catra had smirked. “Wrong Hordak been flying Darla around?”

Entrapta blinked, “Who said anything about Wrong Hordak being my co-pilot?”

“Who  _ is  _ your co-pilot?” Glimmer asked. 

She shouldn’t have asked. 

She stands in the cog pit with her wives, glaring at the passing stars. Entrapta is humming and making  _ ohh  _ and  _ ahh  _ noises at the console. Emily is chittering besides Melog and the cat is barely paying the robot any mind, the usually cool blue flickering red. 

Hordak stares at them dryly, “What.”

Glimmer bristles. A scathing reply is on her tongue but Adora slides in front of her with a peacemaking smile.

“Nothing.” She says cheerily. “It’s just difficult to get used to you being here and not thinking we  _ might  _ have to kill you.”

Catra hisses, “I think his chances are pretty low.”

Melog snarls. 

Entrapta whirls by them on her own rolling chair, “Hordak has been doing community work on beast island ever since he came back to Etheria! We’ve managed to turn the whole island into a new utopia for technology and archaeology.”

She barely pauses to breathe, “Speaking of which, Adora! I need you to swing by and read over the latest First One relics that may or may not be pieces of a death lazer or a portable toilet, they’re so  _ fascinating  _ nyaha!”

Glimmer watches the princess of Drill roll away dryly. Adora gives a weary sigh beside her, her smile wobbling slightly. 

“We’re going to have to get along.” The princess of power announces. “Meaning we’ve got to establish some rules here.”

“By all means,” Hordak mutters from his spot by the dashboard, “keep your rules to yourself.”

“That’s it.” Catra is rolling up her sleeves, “I’m going to finish what we started in the Fright Zone.”

“Catra.” Adora pleaded. “Not in Darla.”

Catra whirls, eyes silted angrily, “Don’t  _ Catra  _ me I’m furious! Why should he even be allowed to come along!?”   
  


Hordak’s voice is dry as a desert, as if even he can’t believe he’s saying such a thing, “I’m the co-pilot.”

“I know where the eject button is.” Catra threatened.

“How convenient.” Hordak rumbles. “So do I.”

Entrapta yells, “I taught him everything about Darla! Mostly. He picked it up really quick! He’s really good at this stuff, you guys!”

Glimmer is ready to roll her eyes, to scoff and join Catra in throwing Hordak into space. But she catches the way his ear twitches, the way his face contorts into something different for a moment. Glimmer blinks and it’s gone.

_ Did he just-? _

“You can defend him all you want.” Catra huffed. “He’s still trash.”

“Are you done?” Hordak looked over his shoulder, “I can hardly hear myself think with you shrieking.”

“I’m throwing him into space, Adora  _ let me go  _ I’m gonna-!”

Adora groaned, “Catra, I know! This sucks and I hate this too but do it for Entrapta.”

Catra relents, her arms looped over Adora’s childishly, “If you had said something dumb like  _ he’s a good guy now  _ I would have scratched you.”

“I would have deserved it.” Adora agrees solemnly.

Entrapta stopped her chair in front of them, her eyes wide with happy sparkles, “You guys would do this for me?! Oh my gosh, I should have brought the coffee machine. Celebration!”

“No coffee.” Hordak says and it makes Glimmer blink in surprise. He glares at Entrapta over his shoulder, “You know what it does to you.”

“Science!” The princess says.

“Mhm.” Hordak shakes his head and looks away. 

Glimmer  _ stares.  _

Her wives are too busy muttering behind her to notice the interaction. The simmering anger is just beneath her skin, but curiosity and confusion is warring with it now. Entrapta rolls her chair over to Hordak’s side, her hair easily lifting herself up to loom over his shoulder. The proximity is close,  _ really close.  _

Glimmer shoves those thoughts away. That definitely wasn’t a priority right now. 

“Wrong Eternia!” Entrapta cheered. “Here we come!”

.

.

“No ones here.”

“Yeah.” Catra sulkily kicks at an exposed tree root. “It’s a fake planet, genius.”

Entrapta makes an  _ ohhh  _ noise, scribbling something on a notepad. The group moved through the empty towns at a steady pace, stopping frequently at abandoned droids and weird First One appliances. 

“What’s this?!” Entrapta would shove something in Adora’s face.

Adora sighed, “It’s a microwave.”

“Ohhhhh!”

Glimmer endured. She kept close to Catra, her wife practically super gluing herself to her side. The lethal looks she kept sending Hordak’s way reflected itself in Melog’s angry red. Glimmer made sure they kept their distance. It was hard to, with how Adora liked to put herself between the two. She walked just casually enough it could be mistaken as coincidence. 

_ My dork.  _ Glimmer huffed fondly. 

“The tech of these ruins is outdated by a few centuries.” Entrapta read off her notepad, her hair idly snatching a piece of equipment from her backpack. “And the electromagnetic waves near the core-  _ woah  _ what a find! If we managed to sound magnify Darla to tune into the subsonic nuclear energy we could-”

“Entrapta.” Adora patted her shoulder. “Please. Small brain version.”

Entrapta laughed, “Oh, right, sorry.”

She picked up a rock and dropped it. 

“We make a sound and it gives us data.” Entrapta explained, giving little jazz hands.

“Kind of like a bat?” Glimmer guessed, “Echolizaton?”

“Precisely!” Entrapta rubbed her hands excitedly, “We just need to find something to make a really big  _ noise.” _

Hordak said, “No explosions.”

“But-!”

Catra grumbled from behind Glimmer, “No explosions, he says. My name is Hordak and I totally didn’t blow up the Fright Zone.”

Hordak glared in their direction, making Catra bristle and Glimmer tense. He rubbed his face tiredly, “We do not know the structural integrity of this  _ fake  _ Eternia. A fracture may only cause it to shatter.”

Adora mumbled, “Well, okay, I guess.”

Glimmer snorted. Of course Adora would be okay with explosions. 

“So now what?” Catra leaned her chin on Glimmer’s shoulder, “Can we go home?”

“Not a chance!” Entrapta scurries by them with frantic excitement, “You mentioned there was a hub of upper class First Ones in a nearby town, correct? Perhaps they might have the technology to produce high frequency noise!”

Glimmer said, “Or we could just blast the Sound System out of Darla.”

“That too!”

The walk back to the ship began. Catra had started to relax, only slightly. Glimmer kept reaching up to run her fingers through her wife’s hair, whispering a soothing word or two. It seemed to work, as Melog changed less frequently to red as they marched on. 

“Oh. It’s that thing.”

Glimmer turned her head. 

Adora held up a familiar tiny droid-  _ cupholder-  _ and flipped it around in her hands. Catra hissed lowly in her ear as Hordak appeared over Adora’s shoulder, looking over the device. 

“It’s broken.” He noted. “It has been for quite some time. May I?”

Adora blinked up at him in surprise, “Uh. Sure.”

Hordak held the object up in his arms. Entrapta practically climbed up his back to get a better view of it, looming over his head with stars in her eyes. 

  
“Oh my gosh, what is that?” The princess awed, “It’s got a hole in it!”

“It says cupholder.” Adora supplied, rubbing her arm, “Seems kinda self explanatory.”

“...Hmm.” Hordak looked at Adora. 

Glimmer felt herself bristle at that, “What? What’s with the face?”

“If it is a cupholder,” Hordak held the device back to Adora, “why is it designed for something bigger in mind?”

“Huh?” Adora blinked down at the device, “...You’re right. That’s weird. It’s almost like-”

She paused. 

Glimmer shifted uneasily, watching her wife’s expression change as she traced the words on the droid. She could feel Catra’s claws digging into her shoulders, the tension in the air rippling. 

Adora’s face changed to something pained, “...Oh.”

“Oh what?” Catra leaned forward, “Speak up, Adora,  _ what?” _

“It’s not a cupholder.” Adora explained solemnly, “At least not for a normal cup.”

Glimmer blinked, puzzle pieces starting to slot together and exhaled shakily, “Wait, you don’t mean-”

“For the honor of Grayskull!”

Warm golden light flashed in front of them, before the towering form of She-Ra was holding the droid. Glimmer inhaled sharply. It’d been awhile since Adora had to transform. She-Ra was now a surprise and a very nice gift. 

With a blank expression, Adora summoned her sword. 

“No way.” Catra breathed, catching on to what was happening. “There’s no way.”

The sword changed into a cup. 

Glimmer almost fell to her knees. The urge to laugh and cry fought with her. She could feel Catra shaking beside her, wheezing out something about princess powers being stupid. Entrapta took it with much more grace, which is to say none at all as the princess nearly started foaming at the mouth.

“Do it!” Entrapta cheered, nearly tackling Hordak to the ground to get a better look, “I wanna see what happens!”   
  


Adora deadpanned, “It’s a cupholder.”

“I’m in agreement.” Hordak rumbles, looking only a little annoyed to be manhandled, “While an interesting find, it’s hardly something we must waste our time with.”

“Please!” Entrapta pouted, “I’ll install jazz into the Sound System!”   
  


Adora twitched.

“I’ll add disco!”

Adora groaned, “Fine.”

“Oh my stars.” Glimmer said.

To the surprise of no one, the cup fit perfectly into the droid. Entrapta cheered excitedly, writing rapidly on her notepad. Glimmer rubbed a hand down her face, amused and exasperated with their shenanigans. 

Catra huffed from her shoulder, “At least it didn’t explode.”

“Don’t jinx it.”

The droid beeped. 

Everyone flinched. Glimmer felt Catra’s arm cage around her and a threatening hiss in her ear. She barely noticed Hordak lift his arm up, an almost shield between the droid and Entrapta. Adora was holding the droid out, nose wrinkled in dismay. 

“It’s just a cupholder,” She looked at them uncertainly, “right?”

The droid beeped again, louder. The cup started shining a translucent blue. Adora flinched. 

“What’s it doing?!” Catra yelled, “Cupholders don’t do that!”   
  


Entrapa laughed delightfully from her perch, “That’s because it’s not a cupholder! Ohhh stars. Why didn’t I make the connection!? To the First Ones, She-Ra and her sword have always been a ‘key’!”   
  


“I know that!” Adora snapped. “What does that have to do with this?”   
  


“In this instance, it’s not a cupholder,” Entrapta cackled, “It’s a  _ key _ holder. We just opened a door!”

“Portal.” Glimmer breathed, the air leaving her and ice crawling up her spine, “Adora, drop it! Now!”

Adora let the droid drop from her hand. It never hit the ground, the metal pieces shimmering and fading into a blinding blue. Glimmer teleported forward, arms reaching for her wife. Her arms wrapped around  _ something  _ before the light became too bright.

They were falling. Glimmer couldn’t see past the tears in her eyes, could only hear Catra’s voice in her ear and the comfort of her arms around her. The portal  _ hissed,  _ wrapping them in ancient magic that whispered words and humming songs from centuries old. 

Glimmer says, “Not again” before she’s knocking into something heavy and solid. 

Her vision goes dark. 


	22. Chapter 22

.

.

Everything ached. Glimmer dizzily became aware of how sore she felt. She could feel a pressure in her head, a swimming pain pounding behind her eyes. She twitched her fingers. Every bone in her body protested the movement. 

“Glimmer, please wake up.”

Not to mention the magic in the air. It was all around her, consuming her, suffocating her. It hurt to breathe and she felt nausea climb in her stomach. The ground she was laying on didn’t feel very stable either. 

“I can’t do this without you,  _ please,  _ I need you.”

Glimmer inhaled sharply. That was Catra’s voice, she was in Catra’s arms, and  _ they had just opened a portal.  _

She blinks open her eyes and winces. The swirling lights and colors are too vibrant. The sky is a film of blue and white magic. It’s moving too sharply. It hurts to look at. 

Catra is looking down at her, her face a mixture of relief and terror, “Hey you.”

The magic fluctuates. It hisses and snaps at her skin and she winces. Catra’s arms are helping her sit up, her fingers shaking as she brushes back Glimmer’s bangs.

  
“Are you with me?” Catra looks her over frantically. “Glim, please, we need to move.”

  
“I’m here.” She coughs. “Where is here?”

“We’re in the space between spaces.”

Glimmer gasped, lurching forward and twisting to look. Hordak stood nearby, his arms crossed and a displeased frown marring his face. He looked up at the unstable magic distastefully. 

“To think First Ones were capable of merely fluxing one from a conduit…”

“What,” Glimmer could barely breathe passed her terror, “what are you-  _ where is Adora-” _

Catra’s hands are gripping her shoulders tightly, “That’s why we need to move. You grabbed the wrong person.”

Glimmer glanced around. No Melog, no Entrapta, and no Adora. The last part made her stomach flip. The last time Adora had been alone in a portal-

“We have to find her.” She pushed herself to her feet, swaying from the vertigo. Catra’s hands held her securely, moving one arm down to wrap protectively around her waist. “Catra, we can’t let her- she’s gonna-”

Catra hissed, “I know,  _ I know.  _ I’m freaking out.”

Glimmer looks at her wife. Catra’s eyes are wide, ears flat against her head and mouth pressed into a thin line. The fear swimming in them has Glimmer’s heart screaming up her throat. 

“Last time-” She rushes out, “Last time my mom stopped her, this time-”

“We’ll find her.” Catra snapped her head around, “We have to move. This is different then last time.”

Hordak said, “This portal is far more ancient and has much different make than the one that nearly destroyed Etheria.”

Glimmer huffed, “You would know, wouldn’t you?”

He gifts her with a blank look, “That knowledge might just save our lives here.”

She doesn’t know what to say to that. Catra is tugging her with jittery hands. She feels her own arms shaking uncontrollably. Horrible memories of a dying reality are just on the edge of her mind. It didn’t help her head felt like it was splitting apart. She tried to block out the pain-  _ Adora, gotta find Adora-  _ and took those first shaky steps forward. 

“Are we just going to wander around?” Catra whispered, “There has to be  _ something. _ ”

“I can-” Glimmer coughed, “I can try a spell.”

Catra’s wide eyes find hers, “Is that safe? What if portals react badly to that?”

Glimmer opens her mouth to say  _ it’s okay  _ but her wife’s expression is changing to something more severe. The arm around her waist tightens. 

“No magic.” Catra says, “I can’t lose you too.”

“We haven’t lost Adora.” Glimmer chokes out, “I can find her.”

  
“No way! I’m not letting you-”

“If you two are done,” Hordak brushed past them, “with or without magic, we must keep moving.”

Catra snarls, “You just  _ love  _ hearing yourself talk, huh?”

He doesn’t reward her with a response. Glimmer is tempted to go the opposite direction he was walking in just to spite him. The more afraid parts were desperate for some defense,  _ someone  _ there that might help them. That person being Hordak just made it all bitter. 

“C’mon.” Catra grumbled, obviously feeling the same. 

Every step jostled her painfully. The blend of colors became a blur. She felt her head loll on Catra’s shoulder a few times, too dizzy to keep up. Catra never took her arm away. Her grip tightened whenever Glimmer stumbled. 

“I can carry you.” Catra offered quietly. “Glim?”

Glimmer had to fight through the cotton in her throat to speak, “I can do this.”

Perhaps the most aggravating about being stuck in the portal was the absence of time. She could fight through the pain. She could even tolerate Hordak’s presence. With every step she took, she became aware another second had passed. How long had it been? She tried counting them in her head. Panic started to prickle her skin when she got to triple digits. 

“I need to use magic.” She felt Catra grip her tighter and almost cried, “Please, we aren’t getting anywhere.”

Catra’s face went through several emotions, “Princess, if you do this-”

  
“Don’t call me that.” Glimmer buries her head into her wife’s shoulder. Catra’s shirt is a welcome comfort compared to the magic itching her nose. “Please, Catra, let me do this.”

Her wife doesn’t say anything for a moment. She expects the rejection, the frailty, the emotions. She can feel her own composure cracking down the seams. Eventually, Catra sighs. 

“You don’t have to get my permission.” She mumbles. 

It’s a  _ yes but I don’t like this.  _ Glimmer nods a few times, sparks of hope flaring in her chest so bright. She kisses Catra’s shoulder, whispers her thanks, and steps back. She tries not to sway. The first spell is as easy as reading a children’s book. The warmth of it ignites down her limbs. The sea around her  _ reacts,  _ pushing and pulling. She can feel it, she realizes. 

She fires off a second spell. It joins the sea as if it was a vacuum. She frowns and wiggles her fingers. Her teleportation magic dances just there, teasingly. The third spell she sends  _ far  _ and the magic around it  _ eats it.  _

“Okay.” She huffs, “If that’s how we’re going to play.”

She gathers her magic under her palms. Fourth, fifth, and sixth spells buzz excitedly in front of her and she sends all three in opposite directions. The fourth  _ whizzes  _ and sputters out. The fifth has a spectacular ending via collision with an opposing magical force. The sixth soars in a graceful arc over both and travels further and further and-

- _ breaks  _ through the sea. 

“There.” She breathes. “There,  _ follow it  _ right there!”

Catra is already dragging her at a near sprint. Glimmer can’t bring herself to care at being almost ragdolled in the air. The pink star burst through the portal's unstable magic, a hopeful glow. 

“It’s being pulled.” Hordak’s voice reached her ears. 

She blinks at it and- he’s right. Something is drawing it. Another magic is coaxing it forward. 

“Adora?” Catra guesses.

Glimmer frowns, “Adora doesn’t know how to do that.”

The star flashes and parts the unstable magic. Like a mist clearing before a sun, there’s Adora. Her wife looks surprised, She-Ra’s golden glow keeping the magic around her from going berserk. Entrapta is squealing and hopping up and down and waving frantically. Melog pokes her head out from behind her and Glimmer’s heart  _ soars.  _

“Guys, guys!” Entrapta cries. “You’re alive!”

Glimmer sobs, “Adora!”

They get closer. Adora hasn’t stepped towards them, her eyes wide and face slack. Glimmer almost hysterically wants to punch her because  _ of course you thought you’d never see us again, of course.  _ She looks like she’d been crying. Glimmer can feel her own tears running down her face and almost teleports right into her wife’s arms.

Someone steps out from behind She-Ra.

Glimmer feels her world tilt and it’s only Catra’s arms around her that stop her from falling. Her wife is saying something but she can’t hear, can’t even see anyone or anything else. She stares at the women in front of her in awe. 

Her mother stares back.

_ Concussion.  _ Glimmer thinks.  _ I’ve finally lost my mind. _

“Glimmer.” Her mother’s voice, the same breathy note she used to pronounce her name. It hurts to hear. The woman in front of her is crying. “Oh, is it really you?”

She can barely breathe past her racing heart, “Mom?”

Wordlessly, Angella the queen of Brightmoon-  _ mom mom mom-  _ is dropping to her knees and opening her arms. Glimmer feels possessed as she pushes forward, her magic roaring from her back as her wings  _ beat  _ against the portal. She’s got two seconds of weightlessness before she’s enveloped into a hug. The familiar hold, the hands she’s known all her life, it snaps something that’s been bent for so long. An open wound is teared clean and all the hurts she’d bottled up come pouring out in a single breathless wail. 

“I’m here, I’m here.” Her mom’s voice-  _ her mom,  _ “Oh, my Glimmer…”

“You’re alive.” Glimmer cries. “I thought- you’re alive,  _ you’re alive-” _

She’s a sobbing, shaking mess. Her mother’s voice soothes her, pets through her hair, tearfully whispers reassurances and it  _ hurts.  _

“This can’t be real.” She sniffles. 

Her mother is leaning back, smiling wistfully, “It is real. I’m just as surprised as you.”

“Yeah.” Adora says sheepishly, “Oops?”

“Oops?” Catra is practically climbing She-Ra to try and shake her shoulders, “ _ Oops?  _ This is a whole lot worse then  _ oops!” _

Glimmer wipes her eyes. Entrapta is manhandling Hordak into a hug, delightfully exclaiming how much research she has to do now. It draws the attention of her mother, who gazes at her former enemy with heavy concern. 

“A lot has changed.” Her mom notes pointedly. “I can say I certainly wasn’t expecting this.”

Glimmer smiled bashfully, “What can I say? I aim to be unpredictable.”

“He’s not a good guy.” Catra says. “Like, at all.”

Angella looks at her with a raised eyebrow. 

Catra visibly shrinks behind She-Ra, “Uh...”

“Adora was explaining much of our situation.” The queen tilted her head. “I find it hard to believe, but I fear much time has passed between then and now.”

Catra’s ears are flat, “You don’t trust me, I get it-”

“But this may be the only time I have.” Angella’s gaze is steady. “I do not trust you, no. But I didn’t trust Adora either when I first met her. She’s almost a second daughter to me. In another time, perhaps I may have viewed you the same.”

Catra flinches, expression sour. Glimmer’s happiness floats and sinks all at once. 

“Mom, why do you sound like you’re going away?”

Adora has that pale, withdrawn look on her face again when she says, “Someone has to get the sword.”

Glimmer almost heaves. Her gaze travels up, far up above them where the  _ stupid  _ keyholding device is. It’s glowing a radiant gold, an innocent cup being held in the center as if it was meant to be there. 

“Someone has to be left behind.” Angella finishes, expression solemn. She smiles and brushes back Glimmer’s bangs, “You’ve grown so tall. I hardly recognized you.”

“Stop that.” Glimmer panics. “Stop talking like you’re disappearing. I  _ just  _ got you back, I can’t do this again, mom please.”

Her mother’s face twists in despair, “I’m sorry. I’m so sorry with the burden I’ve given you. The burden I’ve given  _ all  _ of you. I cannot imagine what it’s caused.”

“Come with us.” Glimmer begs, clinging to her hand desperately. “Please.”

Her mother doesn’t say anything. She leans forward to plant a kiss on Glimmer’s forehead and that’s worse, so much worse than goodbye. She can feel her heart splitting down the middle. 

“Please.” She sobs. “Don’t go.”

“Go where?”

Entrapta leans over them with curiously wide eyes. Glimmer almost has half a mind to shove her away. But there’s confusion and worry in the princess and she can’t do that to Entrapta. 

“The portal.” She sniffles, “Someone has to stay behind to close it-”

  
“Why?”

“What do you mean why?” Catra hisses, “We’re stuck here! We’ll all be trapped here forever!”

Entrapta stares. 

She stares for so long that even Glimmer feels antsy. Catra bristles, opening her mouth to speak when Entrapta gently punches her fist into her palm. 

“Oh.” Entrapta smiles. “This is one of those miscommunication moments isn’t it?”

“What are you talking about?” Adora rubs her head tiredly, “This is like a real life nightmare.”

“Well, why don’t you just take off the transformation?”

Everyone stares. 

Adora’s face contorts and she looks almost sick as she says, “What?”

“She-Ra!” Entrapta waves her hands excitedly, “You don’t  _ need  _ to grab the sword, remember? It’s a part of you!”

“Oh my god.” Glimmer breathes. 

Adora’s eyes are wide, “The transformation…”

Entrapta is grinning in a pleased manner, “So  _ no one  _ gets left behind.”

  
“Will that work?” Her mom is looking at them confusedly. 

“Only one way to find out!” The princess of Drill cackles, “Let it go, Adora!”

Adora laughs weakly. A shuttering of golden light surrounds them, an audible  _ click  _ echoing in Glimmer’s ears. The magic fluctuates and tunnels, spiraling up and up and swirling into a burst of light. 

And fades, a shower of stardust sprinkling down from above. Eternia’s night sky freckles above them. The cupholder clanks to the ground, fizzling a little but empty. Adora stands beside it, arms outstretched shakily. Catra’s arms are around the blonde as she gapes at them. Glimmer can hear Hordak grunt as he almost trips from Entrapta nearly bowling him over in her excitement. Melog meows happily by her feet.

Glimmer looks at her mom and ends up a crying mess all over again. 

“It worked.” She sobs, “Entrapta, you genius,  _ it worked!” _

“Of course it worked!” The princess shouted back, “It’s  _ science!” _

She laughs, sinking into her mother’s arms and reveling in it. Frantic footsteps are approaching and cautiously hovering beside them. She feels her mom laugh and outstretch an arm before a teary eyed Adora is being dragged into the hug. 

“Welcome back.” Adora sniffles. 

“Yes, well.” Angella smiles at them. “It seems I’ve missed out on enough. I don’t plan on missing anything else from here on.”

Her wings wrap around them. Glimmer can recall every instance of the same happening when she was a kid. The sheer amount of comfort and safety of it brings her to tears again. Joyful laughter is shared between them and it's wonderful. 

Glimmer can’t help the sheepish grin as she says, “Would now be a bad time to mention I’m married..?”


	23. Chapter 23

.

.

Brightmoon was at its brightest. 

Catra feels that best describes the week that follows Queen Angella’s return. The kingdom was glowing with joy. Festivals and celebrations sang across the castle. The reunion between king and queen had been a tear jerker. Catra would never admit how close to tears she had been when the king had gently embraced his wife, whispering ‘my angel’ to a crying queen. 

Glimmer became a hummingbird. Whether it was because of excitement or because she wanted to show off her wings, the princess wouldn’t sit still. In a flurry of pink her wife would appear and just as quickly disappear. Catra doesn't mind. It's cute. 

Adora has the same energy, only muted and more unsure. She’d hesitate at a doorway and grip her arms. Catra gives her wife a helpful nudge in those moments. Angella’s presence was doing wonders for the shadow of guilt that had hung off them for years. The joy in Glimmer’s laugh was a song that rang around the kingdom. Adora’s smile was bright. Not even She-Ra’s light could compare.

If only Catra could feel the same. 

If only her wives  _ didn’t  _ notice. 

“You should spend some time with her.” Adora suggested one evening. An evening that had been nice and cozy up until this very moment. Catra grumpily rolled off Adora’s lap, finding the nearby pillows much more enjoyable. “Hey, don’t do that.”

“My bed.” Catra grumbled. 

“It’s mine too.” Her wife huffed in amusement. “Catra, you’ve been sulking.”

The rebuttal is on her tongue. Adora was butting in and,  _ ugh,  _ why can’t they just be happy and leave her alone? She moodily kicks her leg out and feels a little vindicated by Adora’s yelp. 

“That was mean.” Adora crawled up to lay beside her, blue eyes shining with concern. “Wait, are you scared?”

“I’m not scared.” If she was going to be princess of anything, it’d be denial. “I’m just, giving you guys space. So give  _ me  _ some space.”

Adora ignores her by leaning in closer. Catra frowns.  _ Typical.  _

“It’s more then just ‘I opened the portal’ guilt, isn’t it?” Her wife hit the nail on its head. “There’s something else.”

Catra kneaded her claws into the pillow. Perfuma’s voice in her head was gently instructing her through numbers. “Are we really doing this now?”

“Why not? I’m comfy.”

“I will shove you off this bed.”

Adora grins, “I’d like to see you try.”

She’s tempted to rise up to that challenge. Her claws itch for something to dig into, but she retracts them with a sour taste in her mouth. Adora had enough of that to last a lifetime. She didn’t deserve her anger. 

Still. Annoying wives need to be punished. 

She leans over and licks Adora’s palm. The shriek of surprise and following  _ whomp  _ as Adora nearly collides her head with the bedpost is too funny. Catra giggles, watching fondly as her blonde scrambles to right herself. 

“Really?” Adora huffs. 

“It’s not like I  _ haven’t  _ licked you there-”

“Catra!” Her wife is very red. “We’re having a talk.”

She’s almost tempted to continue teasing. With all the excitement, it’s been awhile since she’s had some good time with her girls. But Adora has that  _ look  _ on her face. It’s the same one she wore while she held out her hand while an enemy spaceship surrounded her and the words  _ I’m taking you home  _ were sweet in her ear.

Catra deflates, “What do you wanna hear? I’m not happy about this.”

“I know.” Adora leans her chin on her arms. Catra feels a pang as she’s reminded of nights in the Fright Zone, huddled in the dark of Adora’s bunk. The secrets and laughs they’d share. “I want to help.”

“Of course you do.” Catra sighs.

Adora smiles, “She’s nice once you get to know her, Catra. She’s not gonna know you are too if you don’t talk to her.”

“How’d you do it?”

“Do what? Talk to her?”

Catra nods. 

Adora purses her lips, “I don’t know. A lot of it was She-Ra respect I think. I just...said hi to her when I could. I think that helped.”

“That’s it?” Catra rubbed her face tiredly, “Saying ‘hello’?”

“Try following Glimmer.” Her wife suggests. “It’d be a good excuse if you ever bump into her.”

Catra looks at her wife helplessly, “What do you normally say to her? What do you even talk about with her?”

Adora stares. Her brows furrow and she murmurs, “It’s been awhile. She was good at giving advice. I remember her being very nice even when she was mistrustful of me.”

“So we’re both in the same boat.” Catra says. “No surprise, since the only one we ever talked to was-”

“Shadow Weaver.” Adora finished. 

Catra didn’t say anything to that. She buried her nose into her pillow and forced ugly memories away. She felt a hand gently card through her hair and relaxed. 

“I’m not gonna force you to talk to her.” Adora murmured. “This is harder for you then any of us. But I think she already likes you.”   
  


“How can you tell?” Her voice was muffled into the pillow.

She can still hear Adora chuckle, “Just a feeling.”

.

.

It was midnight and the kitchens were empty. Catra was soundless as she moved around, taking out pans and laying out utensils. The Fright Zone had at least taught her this much. Sneaking around was almost too easy. 

The oven humed as it started up. The cold night air warmed itself around her and she greedily hovered by it, rubbing her arms and hopping from foot to foot. After a moment of feeling like a fool, she stuck on her favorite pair of gloves (pink with some disastrous white stripes, DT had called it a calamity and she immediately loved it because it reminded her of Glimmer). Her eyes adjusted to the dark enough to make out the flour in front of her.

“Right.” She whispered. 

It wasn’t without difficulty. She was entirely self taught when it comes to cooking and Brightmoon's kitchen still freaked her out. She was used to campfire meals and Entrapta’s weird microwave. Having everything ready and at her disposal was a treat and a nightmare. 

The oven beeped and she glared at it, “Shush you can wait.”

She wasn’t sure what she was making. Memories hadn’t let her fall asleep and she’d slipped out of the bedroom to work off some of this restless energy. Shadow Weaver's voice was an ominous bell in her head. She shrugged it off and decided to make a cake. Glimmer loves cake. 

“Strawberries.” She nodded to herself, “I’ll add frosting too.”

She moves around the kitchen, poking at drawers and opening cupboards curiously. She finds what she’s looking for, but ends up collecting sprinkles and chocolate fudge along the way. 

Her ear flicked to footsteps down the hall. She inwardly cursed. She figures if it’s a one of the staff she can throw a spoon at them or something. That’d usually get the message across that she wanted to be left alone. If it was one of her wives she was screwed. 

It was worse. 

The soft purple of a lantern glow filled in the doorway. Angella peered in. Catra hadn’t seen her outside her formal robes. It was weird to see the queen in pajamas. 

  
Adora’s voice ran through her head and she winced.

“Good morning?” She offered uncertainly. 

Angella looked at her in surprise, “Are you baking at this hour?”

She glanced down at her flour covered gloves. The dough sat innocently in front of her and the oven was still merrily beeping. Could she say no and pretend she was lost? 

“Yeah.” She mumbled, embarrassed. She didn’t know what else to say. 

Angella stepped into the kitchen. She looked around with interest, her eyes landing on the unfinished cake with a twinkle in her eye. She sets the lantern on the table and moves over to the cabinets. It makes Catra uncomfortable.

“Did you,” She glances around, “want something?”

Angella looks at her, “I’m only here for some tea. Don’t mind me.”

“Kinda hard not to.” Catra mumbles, resuming her pitifully kneading of dough. 

“Do you come to the kitchens often at this time of night?”

Catra winces, “Uh, not really.”

“I see.” The queen rummages around before giving a soft ‘ah’. “It’s still here.”

Catra’s ears perk, “What is?”

Angella steps back into the lantern glow. A small pink teacup is in her palms. She’s smiling at it. 

“Glimmer was obsessed with tea parties when she was little.” The queen recounted, “She demanded I sit with her every time. She had it scheduled everyday. I’d be in the middle of a council meeting and she’d come running in, crying and demanding to know why I was late.”

Catra couldn’t help but grin, “She, uh, she told me she used to stick popsicles on the walls.”

“Oh stars,” The queen chuckled around an eye roll, “I could never break her of that habit.”

“What did?” Catra asked.

The queen’s smile dimmed. She traced a finger solemnly on the cup, “Micah disappeared.”

_ Ouch.  _ Catra grimaced and hastily started rolling out the dough. It gave her something to do. She didn’t want to look at the pitiful expression on the queen’s face. Adora’s voice prodded her again and she inhaled. The awkward tension wasn’t going to fix itself.

“I’m sorry.” She bit out, wincing at how weak it was, “Uh, I’m sorry for. For what I did.”

Angella looks up at her wearily, “You were not the cause of his disappearance. I do not hold that against you.”

“Yeah.” Catra breathed. “But I was the cause of yours.”

Angella quietly goes about making tea. Catra shifts nervously. The silence was starting to eat her nerves, bit by bit. She was tempted to fake a mistake and just give up on the cake. It’d get her out of this stifling air. 

“Glimmer has told me.” Angella says after a moment. “She had only nice things to say in regards to your achievements.”

Catra sighs, “Yeah, I know.”

The queen tosses her a glance, “That upsets you?”

“Well, uh.” Catra takes a moment to prep another layer to the cake. It spares her some time to think about her answer. “I didn’t do a lot of good things. It’s all I think about.”

“And yet Glimmer  _ and  _ Adora have nothing but praise for you.” The smell of something herbal brewing floats around the kitchen. “Do you not feel the same about yourself?”

“...maybe.”

The queen sets down the teacup in front of her. 

Catra blinks in surprise. The pink cup smells like something Perfuma would make for one of their sessions. The queen seats herself across the table, another cup held in her hands as she takes a dainty sip. 

“Peach.” The queen says. “It’s one of Glimmer’s favorites.”

“Ah.” 

She carefully sets the cake in the oven, kicking it closed and putting her gloves in the sink. She takes a seat at the table, her tail wrapping around her own ankle anxiously. Cautiously, she grabs the tea cup and gives it a sip. 

It’s sweet and sugary, she notes. Not strong enough for her to recoil. A hint of something fruity and tangy in the mix. She almost downs the cup in one go. 

“Thank you.” She says instead, shyly tucking a strand of hair behind her ear, “For the tea.”

Angella’s lips quirk up at that, “Did you like it?”

“Yeah.” She shifts in her seat, “Why’d you make me a cup?”

“I raised my daughter alone through wartime.” Angella looks at her own teacup with a wistful smile, “I know that expression on your face.”

Catra rolls her jaw. She’d been frowning. She reaches up to rub at her mouth and coughs as she gets flour everywhere. Angella chuckles and, yeah, she can die of embarrassment now. 

“Micah also had good things to say about you.” Angella looks at her gently, “Do not think me so unkind to dislike you, Catra. You won my daughters heart and my husbands. You already have a place here. I would never upset that.”

“Oh.” Catra puts the tea cup down, lest she accidentally break it. “But I-”

“The portal was a consequence of many actions, not just your own.” The queen continues. “I’m still adjusting to this strange new peacetime. As are you.” 

Catra looks down. She fiddles with her hands. When she glances back up, the queen is smiling at her. 

“I shared that same tea with Adora.” Angella says, a hint of something mischievous in her expression as she sips her own tea. “I thought it only prudent you taste it as well.”

Catra snorts, unable to help the smile on her face, “She choked on it, didn’t she?”

“Yes.”

She laughs. The oven beeps but she ignores it, looking at the queen in a new light. Sparks of hope are flaring in her chest so brightly it hurts to breathe. 

“I didn’t, we never-” She can’t find the words and ends up rambling, “I never grew up with parents. I had, well, there was Shadow Weaver but she’s  _ you know  _ and, and I’m not good at this. So if I mess up or something could you-”

“It’s not my place to.” Angella says, expression softening. “You are free to love and live how you wish. Glimmer is grown. The three of you are mature enough to make your own decisions.  _ You  _ are free to make your own decisions.”

Catra sniffles, “I just- I was raised-”

“I know.” A hand rubs her shoulder soothingly, “Adjustment takes time. I’m learning this as well. But my Glimmer loves you so fiercely.”

A pause and a smile, “I can see why.”

_ This whole family is out to get me.  _ Catra rubs her eyes, hiccuping through tears. 

“Thank you.” She mumbles into her hands. “I promise I won’t- I’ll try so hard , I won’t let  _ anything  _ happen to her, I love them so much.”

“I believe you.” The queen sits back. “Thank you for bringing happiness to her.”

The oven beeps again. Catra weakly gets up and retrieves her cake. She sets it on the table, the pleasant smell and warmth bathing the kitchen. She feels lighter. It's dark but she sees no shadows.

“Do you,” She hesitates but forges on, “do you wanna help me decorate this?”

Angella smiles, “I’d love to.”


	24. Chapter 24

.

.

"There's no way I'm doing this."

"One meeting." Glimmer raised a finger in the air. "That's all. Please, Catra?"

"The use of  _ please  _ does not help your case."

"I'm sick." 

Catra winced. Guilt wormed its way into her heart as she looked at the pitiful sight of Brightmoon's beloved princess. Glimmer had claimed every blanket they had in the room. She'd converted their bed into a fort, stacked with pillows on every side. Melog's tail poked out of the mess. Catra was almost jealous that her cat got cuddle time and she didn’t. 

Glimmer pouted at her from her nest, "Please? It's only one meeting. You've been to plenty!"

“Not  _ alone. _ ” Catra grumbled. “What about Adora? Your parents?”

“Mission. Busy.” Glimmer smiled apologetically. “I know you said you’d never do it. It makes you uncomfortable. You don’t  _ have  _ to, but I’d feel so bad for ditching Perfuma.”

Catra relaxed a little, “Perfuma will be there?”

“She’s going to be at the meeting, yes.”

“...What’s the meeting about?” It wasn't a yes. She wasn’t saying yes, she was just curious.

Glimmer smile turned smug, “The redecorating of the Fright Zone.”

.

.

She did not know anyone here. 

Scorpia, yeah, and Perfuma,  _ of course.  _ But there were about thirty other princesses she’d never met in her life. How many princesses did Etheria have? This was absurd. Where had they all been during the war? Hiding? 

She doesn’t know why this annoys her. Her irritation only rises further when she’s given awe filled stares. There was no fear, no ‘it’s former Horde commander Catra’. Starry eyed princesses dared to approach her and  _ thank her.  _

“You’re growling.”

Catra glanced at Perfuma and said, “I don’t like it here.”

The flower princess smiled, an ocean of calm compared to Catra’s own frayed nerves, “Is it because Adora and Glimmer aren’t here?”

“No.” Yes.

Perfuma nods sagely, “Right. That couldn’t be it.”

The blaise way it’s said makes Catra bristle, “ _ Look  _ I don’t like princess business. I’m  _ not  _ a princess.”

“Princess Catra!”

She twitches. 

Perfuma’s smile dims a little, “Deep breathes, Catra.”

She barely even has time to breath before another princess is approaching. All smiles and pleasantness. Asks about her day, asks about her wives, how’s she doing, blah blah blah. Catra blankly stares down the girl. Maybe the lack of emotion will drive them away?

No. Another one is approaching. And now that there’s two everyone is suddenly brave enough to come talk to their  _ hero.  _

“I was told- it’s so scary to think about!” One princess exclaims, “To be held captive! You’re a brave princess.”

_ Not a princess,  _ she grits her teeth. Perfuma is making little humming noises beside her which can only mean  _ she’s  _ getting stressed too. Which makes Catra even  _ more  _ mad. 

Another one says, “With no powers at all, I couldn’t imagine how helpless you must have felt.”

More awed whispers. 

“Can you tell us how it happened, Princess Catra-”

“Call me princess  _ one more time-” _ She snarled. 

“Woah, hey girls!” 

Scorpia’s appearance parts the crowd. The scorpion princess practically glows from how bright her smile is. Catra lets out a long exhale, some of her steam leaving with a familiar face. A lot of the attention was on their host and not on Catra. A minor blessing. 

“I know we’re all super interested in Catra’s stoic silence,” Scorpia teases, “But there’s a buffet table calling our names! Let’s chow!”

The crowd eagerly follows Scorpia, delighted by authentic princess charisma. Catra feels her toes curl. She sticks out her tongue at their retreating backs. Perfuma gives her shoulder a consoling pat. 

“There, there. You’ll get the hang of it.”

Catra snorted, “How’d Scorpia get so good at mingling?”

“Well,” Perfuma smiled softly, “she worked hard. It wasn’t easy at first. A lot of princesses well, they were afraid of...uh, her…”

“Pincers?” Catra guesses. 

Perfuma claps her hands with a sigh, “But they’re such gentle pincers! Scorpia would never hurt a fly! But those girls-  _ hmmph-  _ they wouldn’t know a dangerous thing at all in this world unless it knocked at their door.”

Catra blinked, “Woah.”

“Sorry.” The flower princess brushed her hair behind her ear shyly, “You’re not the only one upset with them.”

“No, no. That’s actually, well, it makes me feel better.” Catra gave a small smile, “Everytime Adora and Glimmer attend these things they’re so good at it.”

“Adora likes the attention and Glimmer has done it since childhood.”

“True.”

“And you’re uncomfortable with crowds.”

“...True.”

Perfuma coughs into her fist, her face tinting red, “Oh I’m sorry. I just- I get a little worked up at these meetings. We’re supposed to be-  _ discussing  _ not- excuse me,  _ fraternizing.” _

“Woah.” Catra repeated. 

She looked at the buffet table. She looked back at Perfuma. 

Perfuma frowned, “Now wait a second-”

“You’re  _ jealous. _ ”

“Shush!” Perfuma hissed, clamping a hand on Catra’s mouth, “Not so loud! Please, Catra, there’s magical princesses who love to gossip fifteen feet away from where we are.”

Catra’s grin is so wide it hurts her cheeks, “You didn’t even deny it.”

“It’s not the  _ point.”  _ Perfuma pouted, “I know it upsets you too. These princesses did not fight in the war.”

Catra’s smile dropped, “...yeah.”

“And I will not judge them for it, no.” The flower princess continued wisely, “We all make our own decisions. Theirs was to...to...to  _ hide.” _

“Cowards.” Catra agreed. 

She felt better. Much better. The earlier tension riding in her shoulders loosened. She wasn’t alone, not really. She could hear Scorpia laughing from across the room and Perfuma’s gentle presence beside her. She breathed in and out.

She could do this.

.

.

Adora picked her up. 

Catra eyed Swift Wind miserably. She didn’t want to go back to Brightmoon on him. While she’d grown accustomed to him being around, she favored the ground a lot more than the sky. But  _ someone  _ had to pick her up after she nearly started a war with a neighboring kingdom for punching their princess. Scorpia had been kind enough to let her use a tablet to contact home. 

Her wife smiled at her helplessly, “Nice black eye.”

“Shut up.” So she was being teased? That’s how this was going to go? “I’m going to walk if you don’t wipe that stupid look off your face.”

“Easy.” Her blonde held out an arm invitingly, “C’mere. Let me see.”

“There’s nothing  _ to  _ see. Buzz off.”

Adora didn’t budge. With a sigh, Catra walked forward. Her wife hummed happily as she took her hand. Her other hand hovered cautiously over her face.

“Did you get into a fight with Frosta?” Adora asks, a touch of amused hysteria in her voice. 

“Frosta wasn’t here.”

“Ah.” Her fingers prod the bruise. 

Catra hisses, “Ouch,  _ ow,  _ don’t do that.”

Adora leans forward to kiss her forehead. Catra is almost grumpy enough to shove her away, until Adora’s thumb starts running soothing circles on the back of her hand. It feels nice compared to how painful her face feels. 

“Can we go home?” She whispers tiredly, “Please?”

“Of course.” Adora gives her another sweet kiss. “Get on first.”

Catra frowns and almost denies it. She can tell when she was being coddled. Just because she was angry didn’t mean she needed to be  _ babied.  _

“I’m walking.”

Adora's smile softens, “I’ll walk with you.”

“You-” Catra points at her, “-aren’t invited.”

Swift Wind abruptly leans his head into the conversation, completely invading her personal space, “Hey Catra, how’d you get that anyway?”

“What?” she bristles, “The eye? Some princess said something backhanded about Glimmer. She got what she deserved.”

“Gnarly.”

Adora was outright beaming at her, the energy from the freaking sun channeling itself through her, “Catra, you’re the best.”

And,  _ ugh,  _ she can’t stay mad at her wife when she’s giving her that devoted look. She wants to. Adora shouldn’t be treating her so gently. Every sweet word prickles her skin.  _ She didn’t deserve this she messed up- _

“Catra?” Blue eyes were leaning closer to her own, “It’s okay.”

“I’m fine.” Her voice is hoarse. “Why aren’t you mad?”

Adora blinks, “Why would I be?”

“I  _ punched  _ a princess.”

Her wife giggles. Catra frowns, feeling like she missed a joke. She bonks her head against Adora’s, which only makes her blonde more happy. 

“Sorry.” Her wife smiles beautifully. “I wish I could have seen that.”

“You’re  _ happy?” _

“What’d she say about Glimmer?”

Catra clamped her mouth shut. Perfuma’s lessons are instructing her through breathing exercises. A shadow crosses over them and she barely glances up at Swift Wind’s colorful wing. It’s just them. She exhales. 

“She asked if Glimmer’s still a princess after joining Horde Prime.”

Adora tilted her head confusedly, “But she never did-”

“And  _ then  _ asked if that’s where we first kissed.”

“...Oh.”

Swift Wind audibly cringed, “Wow. I thought tact was a princess thing?”

Catra crossed her arms, “Apparently not.”

Abruptly, Adora leans forward and kisses her. It’s nice,  _ too nice.  _ She’s grumpy and not enjoying it as much as she should, even when Adora cradles her jaw and tilts her head to the side just right. They part and her wife’s eyes are sparking with magic. 

“I  _ really  _ wish I would have seen that.” Adora whispers.

_ Oh.  _

Catra swallows dryly. Her tail is betraying her and wrapping around Adora’s leg. Her wife is grinning toothily. It’s taking Catra’s heart through spirals. 

“Let’s go home.” Catra grumbles, trying to save face around how red she feels.

Adora says, “I like that.”

.

.

It’s late in the night. Adora resumes her discarded paperwork, having apparently been abandoned when she got the message about The Punch. Catra leaned her chin on her wife’s shoulder, watching her write diligently. Glimmer had complained about being left out of the fun and had claimed her lap. To be surrounded by her lovers was a delight. 

“If you get me sick again I’m puking on your shoes.” Catra mumbles. 

Glimmer yawns into her stomach, “Deal with it.”

Adora chuckles, reaching up to readjust her glasses and  _ ugh ugh ugh  _ why does Adora look attractive in reading glasses? It was the worst. The absolute worst. She’s not even smart, this was so unfair. 

Catra moodily curls around her  _ favorite  _ wife. Glimmer laughs, “Adora stop being cute.”

“I’m working?” Adora raises her head to blink at them, “What?”

Catra makes a face at her, “Take the glasses off.”

“Scandalous.” Adora smirks, “What’s in it for me?”

“A knuckle sandwich.”

“Ohhh!” Glimmer nuzzles her shirt happily, “Tell me the story again. I’m never gonna get tired of it.”

Catra looked down at her wife wearily, “I’ve told it three times.”

“Not enough. I want to hear it again.”

“Is that right?” Catra bends down to press kisses to the top of her head, “How about you get better and I’ll tell it again.”

“Terrible. Hate it.”

Adora says, “I like that.”

Catra almost makes a sassy remark about that, but Adora is suddenly leaning into her space with a fiery look. It’s all mischievous and bad intentions and completely takes her breath away. Her voice tickles her ear.

“Face it, Catra.” Her wife teases, “We’re your biggest fans.”

“That’s so cheesy.” Catra’s face is on fire. She’s glad it’s too dark to see. “Learn to flirt better.”

“Oh?” Adora tilts her head to let the glasses fall down the bridge of her nose and  _ oh no,  _ that was definitely a not nice look. It’s a look reserved for hot kisses and exploring hands. She felt like she was going to melt. Glimmer was laughing at her misfortune. 

“We should get Catra glasses. She’d look adorable.”

Catra almost wheezes, “I’m going to break every pair of glasses in the castle.”

Adora nonchalantly goes back to her paperwork as if she hadn’t just deployed a tactical nuke to Catra’s brain. She says casually, “Just like you broke that princess’s nose?”

“ _ Adora.” _

“Yes, Catra?” She’s saying it too innocently.  _ Devil.  _

Catra groans and drops her head, hiding her face into Glimmer’s hair. Her wife hums happily into the hug. Her princess’s hands are ghosting up Catra’s sides, feather like touches that send tingles down her spine. 

“I love you.” Glimmer whispers, “My hero.”

“Cut that out.” Catra feels her tail lash. “I heard that enough today.”

“Defending my honor by punching the lights out of a princess?” Glimmer looks up at her with adoring eyes, “I’m swooning.”

Catra deflates, completely weak to the sincerity, “You two are the worst.”

“Love you too.” Adora replies distractedly. 

Glimmer laughs. 


	25. Chapter 25

.

.

The killer robots were back.

Adora deadpanned at her tree- it’s  _ her  _ tree because it’s the only thing protecting her from incendiary droid blasts. The planet Dezlam is a peaceful place with lush forests that experience a dry season eleven months of the year. It’s very flammable. Enough so that their regular yearly forest fires aren't alarming (okay?) but have become  _ very  _ alarming. 

“Someone is sending them. These aren’t just rogue bots.” Glimmer’s voice crackled over the comms. Adora tapped her ear as it fizzled. “They keep targeting the locals. Catra?”

“Present.” There was a crash behind all the static. “We’re holding our ground here. Everyone’s safe.”

“Adora?”

Adora stares at the fires around her dryly, “In the thick of it.”

“Perfect!” Glimmer chirps, “Do you think you can trace where they’re going?”

“Yeah.” The rail of destruction wasn’t obvious since it was  _ everywhere.  _ But the bots all were coming from somewhere. They weren’t advanced enough to do that. “I’ll handle this.”

Catra snorts, “Sure.”

...And maybe everyone’s a little tense since these robots have almost killed her before. Adora frowns at her tree. It’s not her fault it got out of hand. And she got out of it okay! They won’t get the drop on her again. Last time they were lucky.

A bot skitters past her tree and stops. It takes a moment to think, to process the empty space in front of it before it’s tiny head is swiveling towards her.

She cracks her knuckles.

“Your luck just ran out.”

.

.

The ‘source’ ends up being disappointing. 

Adora rifles through the wreckage of what once was a functional laboratory. She’ll have to ask the locals about it. Maybe even Entrapta would know a thing or two about ancient abandoned facilities that weren’t ever turned off. Given that their only directive is to eliminate all lifeforms on the planet, she’s delighted to take her sword to the core. The explosion is satisfying. 

All the bots left unharassed by her power down. 

She grins.  _ Mission accomplished.  _

“Hey girls, the bot problem should be taken care of.” She taps her ear. “It’s an old laboratory a few miles from the village. Destroyed  _ everything  _ important, so no more killer bots. Go team.”

Static. 

She frowns, “Wait, are you guys mad I blew everything up? I’d say they deserved it.”

Silence.

“Girls?” She glanced around the empty lab, “Glimmer? Catra? Hello?”

No response. 

Adora doesn’t panic. She takes a deep breath and  _ doesn’t panic.  _ Her wives were very powerful. These killer bots, while annoying, weren’t that dangerous. Her side twinges with a phantom ache. She frowns.

_ They aren’t called killer bots for nothing, Adora. _

The forests of Dezlam flake with ash. Bots lay abandoned in a trail of carnage. Smoke clouded her vision. Adora inhaled and exhaled carefully. She would not panic.

“Girls!” She yells, “Where are you? Glimmer! Catra!”

“Adora?”

Adora slumped with relief, “Catra! Thank goodness I thought- nevermind. Where are you two?”

Catra didn’t respond right away. The long pause had an inkling of panic coming back to her. Her wife’s voice had a breathy quality as she said, “You...defeated the bots?”

“Yeah.” Adora poured her lips. “Catra? You okay?”

“...uh.”

Adora tenses, “Uh  _ what?  _ Catra, what’s going on?”

“Could you…” A soft wheeze, “...heal this place, or something. Smoke kinda, kinda sucks.”

A bout of violent static followed. Adora’s hand clenched around her sword. More worried questions were on her tongue, but she bit it down. Something had happened. She needed to stay calm. 

She-Ra’s magic burned. The moment the blade brushed the ground, green and life reached up. Smoke cleared and the bots sunk into the ground. The gnarled husks of trees preened. They glowed under her magic, their branches springing flowers. Grass tickled her ankles as she lifted her sword back up. 

“Done.” She says, though she doesn’t doubt the healing had already reached the village. “Catra?”

“Much better.” Her wife huffs, “Adora?”

“What's wrong? Where’s Glimmer? Are you okay?” She winces, “Just- sorry. Tell me where you are.”

Catra laughs and it’s wrong. Something about it is too rough, too sharp. It ends with a wheezing cough. Adora can feel her shoulders tensing up. 

“Village.” Catra says, “We’re here.”

“Okay. I’m on my way.”

“Adora?” 

She pauses. Catra sounds vulnerable,  _ afraid.  _ “...Catra?”

“Adora,” Her wife whimpers, “please  _ hurry.” _

It’s only a few miles. She-Ra’s powerful leaps treat it like it’s a game of hopscotch. She bounds from tree and rock and hill and the village is in sight in less than a minute. She see’s where she last left her wives. There’s a graveyard of bots. A part of her wants to take a moment to appreciate the damage. The deep grooves in the ground and the scratches on any visible metal gives her a swell of pride.

A larger part of her immediately notices the absence of her girls.

“Catra?” She looks around. “Where are you?”

“...Hold on.”

Adora doesn’t. She paces restlessly. She-Ra’s arms easily pick up broken machinery. She lifts up fractured trees and moves aside mounds of dirt, just in case. Frustration almost has her yelling into the comms again.

And then Melog is poking her head out from behind a tree.

“Oh.” Adora rubs a hand down her face. “Of course.”

An almost laugh bubbles past her lips. Relief is sitting just there in her chest and she’s ready to embrace it, her wives, her peace of mind. 

She walks around the tree and stops in her tracks.

Catra raises her head with a weary grin. There’s blood caked over her lips and her fangs have a pink tint to them. Adora can never recall ever seeing her girl, her Catra ever looking in such a state. Glimmer is curled in her lap, her wings cupping the three of them protectively. Her arm is bent in an awkward angle and she’s cradling it to her chest. Only Melog is unharmed compared to the red staining their clothes. 

Adora would have rather been punched in the stomach then feel what hits her. She swallows and forces down  _ emotions.  _ Tears are pricking her eyes and her jaw is trembling, but she can’t do that. Catra looks wrecked and she’s not even sure Glimmer is conscious. Both are alarming. 

“Stay still.” She soothes, crouching down to get a better look. “I’ll heal it.”

Catra gives a short, gasping breath before she says, “It’s all healed. Just my ribs.”

_ All healed.  _ Adora stares at where Glimmer is draped over Catra. The protective stance isn’t lost on her. Catra’s abdomen is covered in sticky red. Wordlessly, she places her palms on her wives heads and lets her magic go. The warmth of healing brightens the area and Glimmer shudders. 

“Adora?” Her wife mumbles, “She’s here?”

“She’s here, baby.” Catra wheezes, “Don’t move.”

“She’s here.” Glimmer echoes, weakly raising her head. Hazy eyes meet Adora’s before a dazzling smile is crossing her face. “Hi Adora.”

Adora leans forward to kiss her forehead and doesn’t let go, doesn’t lean away,  _ don’t you dare.  _ She exhales, Glimmer’s bangs brushing her lips teasingly. Glimmer makes a soft noise. 

“My arm.” She whispers. “It feels better. Thank you.”

“What happened?” 

Catra wipes her mouth with her sleeve, grimacing in disgust, “We got...surrounded. I took something I shouldn’t have.”

Adora doesn’t look at her abdomen. She knows it’s healed, twice now, but the remnants of it are everywhere. Is this how they felt when she came home so long ago? Witnessing the aftermath of something they couldn’t prevent? 

She says, “And then?”

“Glim was here.” Catra huffed, gazing down at the princess softly, “She didn’t let them by.”

“You’re welcome.” Glimmer mumbles. 

“Thank you.” Catra leans forward, the vulnerability creeping back into her voice as she moves her face into Glimmer’s shoulder. “Thank you, I love you so much.”

Glimmer heaves a strangled sob and curls tighter around them. Melog meows happily, tilting her head up to offer comfort in kitty nuzzles. Adora gives both her wives one more kiss. 

“Don’t move.” She shifts her weight from her knees to her heels, “I’ll carry you.”

“Both of us?” Catra raises an eyebrow.

  
“I can carry a tank, Catra.”

“Don’t be sexy while I’m covered in blood.” Her wife gives a put upon sigh, but it’s lost behind how weary it actually sounds. “Please.”

Adora cracks a weak smile at the attempt at humor, “No promises.”

Saying she could carry them was much different than actually doing it. She couldn't carry them under her arms. Playfully, she’d carried both on her shoulders before. She settled with cradling them, looping her arms underneath their knees and hoisting them up to lean against her shoulders. She huffed in amusement when both took advantage of the height to rest their chins on her head. 

“Comfy?” She asked.

“Mmm.” Catra purred, her tail curling around her arm. 

“I’ll take that as a yes.”

.

.

Adora blew out the last candle on her desk. The bedroom turned dark in moonlight, the only light besides Melog’s cool blue. She carefully stepped over the cat. She deserved her sleep, Adora thought fondly. Her girls were safe and sound and tucked comfortably in bed. 

Glimmer’s wings shifted and curled. Her princess had glued to Catra’s arms. Catra was rumbling happily, her tail moving underneath the blankets. Adora readjusted the covers to keep them warm. Enough pillows? Good. 

“Adora.” Glimmer complained drowsily. “Come here.”

“I’m here.” Adora leaned over to kiss her cheek. “I’m not going anywhere.”

“Don’t be dramatic.” Catra mumbled, reaching out blindly. Adora obligingly let her latch onto her and lets herself be dragged under the blankets. Catra  _ sighs  _ blissfully, burying her nose into Adora’s throat. “Better.”

“How’s the arm Glim?”

Glimmer groans, “Healed. Sleep. Now.”

Adora allows herself to relax, “Okay. Good.”

She doesn’t fall asleep right away. She stays up as her girls drift off. Her hand brushes Glimmer’s bangs, watching her wife inhale and exhale peacefully. Catra’s claws are kneading her shirt. Adora has to stop herself from cooing at the cuteness. They're here and alive and it's a sight that she has to fight down tears over. She watches over them beside the moon, protectiveness beating in her chest. 

“I love you two.” She whispers. “Good night.”


	26. Chapter 26

.

.

They needed a break. 

Adora still felt too jittery for her skin. Every moment she caught herself alone gave her a scare. _Are they okay_ became a frantic mantra in her head until she’d end up tripping on Catra’s tail. Her wives were recovering well. Well _enough._ Catra was more than grumpy about how mummified she looked and Glimmer kept scowling at her arm. She-Ra healing had saved them, but the healers had given them _bandaid treatment_ as Adora liked to call it. They weren’t in pain and their wounds were almost entirely gone. It just gave everyone peace of mind.

Not her. 

She feels a chill every moment her wives disappear on her. It’s ridiculous, she knows, they’re safe in Brightmoon. Catra was content to fall into a coma for the next few days and Glimmer had happily joined her. All is well. Usually. Probably. 

She winces. 

Adora admits, she’s been hovering. A lot. It’s starting to irritate everyone. Including herself. She couldn’t help it! The last time they’d all been in danger, _all of them,_ Horde Prime was alive. It made her skin itch. 

They need a break. 

“What do you have in mind?” Bow tilts his head at her. “I’m glad you came to me for advice, but Catra doesn’t like traveling and you _know_ how the healers get.”

Adora sighs, “I don’t know. Something fun to do to take our minds off things.”

“Things.” Bow echoes, his face twisting in discomfort. “Well, we could maybe play a board game…?”

“Uh, I don’t know if-” She paused. An idea sparked in her head and she grinned, “Actually do you remember our little battle map figurines? I think we could use those.”

“For what?”

“A game.” She faltered, “But I don’t remember the rules. Kyle was the one who made it up.”

Bow smiled in amusement, “Isn’t that one of your old Horde friends? Why not just call him up?”

Adora tapped her chin thoughtfully. She knows her former team is in the Wastes with Huntara, but contact had been minimal since the end of the war. The most she’d seen of them had been when they were doing community service on Beast Island. 

“Alright.” She decides. “I think we’re overdue for a reunion anyway.”

.

.

“Seriously?”

“Just try it, Catra.” Adora smiles. “We _did_ grow up with them.”

Her wife slouches further into her chair, “Oh good. More people with the worst childhood ever. All in the same room. Who I also bossed around. This can’t possibly go wrong.”

Glimmer draped her arms over the back of the chair, “And I fought with them on every battlefield. So did Adora!”

“Then remind me how this is a good idea?”

Adora sheepishly rubs the back of her neck, “I thought it’d help everyone relax.”

Catra snorts. 

Adora winces. She’s starting to see the fault in it. Distance had been all they had to mend the rift between their former team. She didn’t have any ill feelings about them, but they were different. Rogelio had kept to himself, Kyle was a bit of a loser, and Lonnie was a no nonsense type. Adora can barely remember her last interaction with them.

_That’s kind of sad._ She frowns. _I don’t want them to just be memories._

“We should give it a try.” She suggests. “If it ends badly then it won’t happen ever again.”

“And if it ends well?” Catra mumbles. 

Adora doesn’t know what to say to that. 

.

.

“It’s called Dungeons and Dark Spells.”

Catra was laying on the floor, head buried into the carpet. Her groan of disgust was muffled. Adora shot a helpless smile to Lonnie, who shrugged her shoulders in _it’s normal._ They finished unfolding the table in the guest room. Bow was hovering over Kyle’s shoulder, staring down at the books in the blonde’s hands with unease and awe. 

“Where’d you _get_ these?” Bow asked.

Kyle preened, “I made them myself.”

Rogelio was holding his figurine dubiously. It looked a little deformed from where Adora was standing. She looked at the table where all their figurines were and smiled. It was kind of cute. She felt a shoulder brush hers and glanced over at Glimmer. Her wife gave her a knowing look. 

“Having fun?” 

“I like this.” Adora admits, tapping a finger to the top of Catra’s freshly made figurine. “Look! She’s pocket sized.”

Catra groaned again. 

The seven of them gathered around the table. Eight, Adora added in amusement when she spotted Melog’s tail poking out from underneath the table. Kyle set up his books, looking pleased as he handed everyone little parchments. 

Catra stared down at her shrewdly, “Really?”

“It’s a strategy game.” Kyle explained smugly. “You create a character to play and fight monsters with. It’s a turn based combat type, so you’ll have to work together to defeat what I throw at you!”

Lonnie is leaning back in her chair when she says, “Kyle just get on with it.”

“Right!” He clears his throat, “Uh, Rogelio likes being a sorceress. So uh, he gets that.”

Lonnie rolled her eyes, “Fine. I’ll be a fighter.”

“Hey!” Catra leaned forward with a scowl, “How come she gets to be the fighter?”

“You seriously think you’re good enough to be fighter?” Lonnie raises an eyebrow. 

“What’s _that_ supposed to mean?”

“Just saying,” Lonnie smirks and flexes an arm, “I got what it takes.”

Kyle meekly puts in, “Huntara has been training her. A lot. It really hurts.”

Adora is almost tempted to vault over the table and demand an arm wrestle. Glimmer has a sixth sense to her hyperactivity and jabs her in the elbow.The blonde winces. 

“Uh, I’ll be a paladin.” She glances at her sheet to check. “I think.”

Bow smiled at her, “You know you can be something else right?”

Adora blinks, “Why wouldn’t I be a paladin?”

  
“Well it’s kinda-”

“She-Ra.” Glimmer giggles. 

_Oh._ Adora feels her face flame red. “I’ll be the best paladin. Don’t judge me.”

Glimmer laughs at her, gazing down at her own sheet in happy bemusement. She looks like she has no idea what’s going on but is enjoying it too much to stop. It’s a nice contrast to the solemn expression she wore when they returned home. 

“I’ll be,” Glimmer hums, “ a wizard? It’s kind of like being a princess.”

“Oh, so you get to be a princess but I can’t be She-Ra.” Adora teases. 

“Obviously wizards are superior to paladins.”

“Can you guys stop flirting.” Lonnie drags her hands down her face in exasperation. “It’s been like five minutes.”

Catra snickers, “Deal with it.”

“ _You_ still need to pick a class.” 

Kyle nods his head, “Yeah. Hey, Catra! I think you’d make a great druid. They can transform into animal-”

He freezes. Adora raises her sheet up to hide her grin. Across the table she can see Lonnie doing the same. Beside her, Glimmer sighs. Catra’s glare is practically lethal. 

“Wanna run that by me again?” Her wife hisses. 

“Nope, no.” He squeaks. “Rogue it is! You’ll be an excellent rogue.”

Catra settles but is still frowning as she looks at her character. All eyes go to the last of the party. Bow is looking at his sheet with intense focus. He rubs his chin thoughtfully. 

“What’s it gonna be, arrow boy?” Lonnie asks. 

“I’ve narrowed it down.” He says. “I think the answer is obvious.”

Kyle grins with relief, “Oh good. That’s good. I’m glad we have a rang-”

“Artificer.” Bow claps his hands in satisfaction. “It just speaks to me.”

“Uh. Sure.”

Adora laughs.

.

.

“You start in the town of Brightington.”

“ _Wow.”_

“Catra, shush! It’s getting good!” 

“Adora, what are you _on_ right now?”

“Adventure.” 

“Seahawk isn’t here! Cut that out!”

.

.

“-and the barkeep asks if you’d like a drink.” Kyle waves his hand. “It’ll be eight copper.”

“Is that the currency?” Bow asks, getting far too immersed as he thumbs through one of the books, “I think I have that.”

“It’s _my_ drink.” Catra points out, rubbing her arm self consciously. “You don’t have to pay for that.”

“I’ll pay for you.” Glimmer says.

“Not if I do it first.” Adora adds. 

Lonnie groans.

.

.

“The man at the other table is holding a knife-”

Catra says, “I steal his knife.”

Kyle drops his head into his hands miserably, “This is the third knife, Catra, you aren’t even _using_ them.”

“I’ve decided I’m a knife collector.” Catra sniffs. “You can’t control me.”

Kyle whimpers. 

Glimmer is trying to muffle her giggles as she says, “I cast sleep on him.”

“Aw thanks babe.”

“Please.” Lonnie has her face on the table. “Five minutes. That’s all I’m asking for.”

Adora gives her a sympathetic look, “I’d say I’m sorry, but they are my wives.”

“It was bad when it was just you and Catra.” Her teammate complains. “Now there’s _three_ of you.”

“Deal with it.” Catra sings. 

.

.

“The bandit captain approaches you Bow. He’s going to let you go if you surrender all your money.”

Bow hums, “That’s pretty reasonable. We’re kinda outmatched and I don’t wanna pick a fight. I’m gonna-”

“I cast thunderwave.”

Catra perks up, “You cast what?”

Glimmer moves her figurine back with a laugh, “Thunderwave. It’s a cone attack. Uh, well. You’re all in the way.”

“I have thunder resistance.” Lonnie says.

Kyle blinks, “Since when?”

“Since now.”

Rogelio calmly moves his figurine away from the party. Adora is too busy laughing to avoid the attack.

.

.

“-and the skeleton comes to life! It swings its sword at you Adora.”

Adora stares. “Uh.”

Kyle falters, “What’s wrong?”

“A skeleton? Comes to life?” She echoes. “Doesn’t that mean they’re just, alive?”

“Well.” Kyle nervously gestures to the board. “It’s. A walking skeleton.”

“Oh so it’s not alive?”

“It is! It’s, it’s a skeleton though.”

“I’m not sure I understand.”

Glimmer pats her shoulder, “It’s okay take your time.”

.

.

Bow dramatically clutches his chest, “I’m...I’m down!”

Adora is holding onto her dice with wide eyes. Across the table, Catra is shaking Bow by the shoulders.

“You’re not allowed to die! Get back up!” 

“The only one who can get him back up is Adora.” Lonnie bites her lip. “The skeletons will definitely go for him next round.”

“I’m across the map.” Adora looks at the board nervously, “I don’t know if I’ll reach him.”

Glimmer is practically vibrating in her seat from how stressed she looks, “I’m still poisoned, I won’t be able to hit them all without disadvantage. If I could get one more thunderwave in…”

“You’ll hit us!” Catra cries. “Again!”

Bow looks ill, “If I get hit again...I'll die.”

Rogelio calmly hands him a healing potion. 

“Oh. Thanks. I’m back up.”

Everyone sighs. 

.

.

“-and you clutch the chalice of silver knowledge and throw it into the volcano! The god of fire is defeated!”

“Yes!” Catra stands up in her chair, “We did it! We made it!”

Adora slumps in her chair with relief, “I thought we were done for. You saved us, Catra.”

Lonnie grudgingly gives her a pat to the back, “Thanks for the assist.”

“Don’t mention it.” Catra has a pleased smile on her face. “Looks like you should have got fire resistance instead.”

“Tell me about it.”

Kyle closes his book happily, “And that’s the game! How’d you guys like it?”

Glimmer’s head was buried in her character sheet, “Did we level up?”

“...What?” Kyle blinks, “The game is over.”

“Ohhh.” Bow leans over the table, “Glimmer, if you level up you can cast dimension door. Pocket dimension!”

“We’ll see who’s god now.” Her wife remarks ominously. 

“Did we get a long rest?” Lonnie asks. 

“Yeah, I’m bushed.”

Adora smiles at Kyle, who’s looking more and more frantic, “Looks like we gotta schedule another session.”

“Oh.” He breathes before breaking out into a wide grin, “Alright!”

.

.

Later, Catra grudgingly will ask if they can make characters together. Adora obliges and all three of them will crowd around her desk, giggling and gossiping about tragic backstories. 

“Next time, I’m totally going as paladin.” Catra says.

Adora blinks, “Why?”

“New She-Ra in town.”

She pouts, “But I’m She-Ra.” 

Glimmer laughs, “I’ll be a paladin too.”

“We can't _all_ be paladins!”

“Who says?” Catra smirks, “Sounds like you’re jealous.”

In retaliation, Adora steals her dice. She figures she’s only getting into character as she decides to be a rogue. Catra’s look of bafflement when she introduces herself at the next session is well worth it.


	27. Chapter 27

.

.

Brightmoon was stuffy. It was too crowded with celebration and festivities. At least, that’s how Catra felt about it. Adora was having the time of her life dragging them from booth to booth and making heart eyes at any prizes to be won. Catra rolls her eyes- _you’re She-Ra this should be child's play-_ but the grin on the blonde’s face melts her heart over and over again. Glimmer patiently explains all there is to do. She’s much more open about her amusement, peppering Adora’s stupid cute face with kissing any chance she gets. 

Catra doesn’t mind the atmosphere. It’s peaceful and calming. Even when the queen and king join them, she can’t find her anxiety. It’s nice. 

She’s had to use Melog a few times to get some air. She just doesn’t do well in crowds. Too much body heat, too many voices, and not enough of just _them._ She finds herself in the quiet of the woods, the only sound in her ears her own footsteps shadowed by Melog’s.

The woods are calm. During the war, she can’t recall a time where these trees ever brought her solace. Moonlit dates and long star filled nights changed her. The woods felt like home, an extension of herself, a memory welcoming her back into warm hands. She walks leisurely. She’s in no rush to return to the festival. 

“Twenty more minutes.” She says for Melog’s benefit. “I’ll feel better then.”

There’s an unsaid _and the crowds will be thinner._ She keeps her dignity and stuffs her hands into her jacket. The evening chill feels nice against the summer heat. A perfect night for a stroll. She’s already making plans to grab the other two for later. Stargazing gave her so much time to cuddle in between her wives. She ranks it her favorite past time right beside steamy kisses. 

She stops. “Oh.” 

Melog nudges her knee. 

She huffs a laugh, running a hand down her face. “I’ve gotten used to this. I’m...really different now, aren’t I?”

_That’s not bad._ Her cat reassures. 

Catra frowns at her hand. She can pick out the callouses and the scars. Tiny ones that were the result of growing claws. A much longer one over the back of her palm from tank shrapnel. A burn on her thumb from blowing up the Fright Zone. Her other hand has a small cross of scars that go over her knuckles. She doesn’t recall how she got those. 

Catra closes her eyes. The forest sounds wash over her. Bug noises make her ear flick. It’s different, she’s different. 

“Ah.” She smiles down at Melog. “Uh, yeah. I’m okay with this.”

Melog smiles. Catra has a hunch her cat already knew that. With a playful roll of her eyes, she continues over tree roots. Twenty minutes pass in the quiet of a sleeping forest. She knows her wives will worry if she spends too long away and turns them around to head back. They had no problem sacrificing their night to come find her. She smiles at her feet, a small giddiness lifting her spirits. 

She pauses in her steps. Down by her feet the grass is disturbed. She raises her head curiously. The tree near her is scuffed, it’s bark split open by tiny scratches. Catra cocks her head to the side and examines it. A hint of iron has her nose wrinkling.

“Well that’s one way to ruin the mood.” She comments. 

Melog bristles red. Idly, Catra runs her hand over Melog’s head. The forest is tricky but she’s faced it many times. The creatures aren’t as dangerous anymore. The lack of war to stress on it has made many aggressive creatures docile. 

_What could it be so close to Brightmoon?_ She considers it. She should really be getting back. Catra leans back to do just that when Melog starts pawing at one of the roots. 

“What’s up?” She couches down to look.

Melog lifts her head up, a small shoe in her mouth. 

Catra exhales. 

_Oh._

“Let’s go check it out.” She decides, gently taking the shoe from her cat. It’s so small it barely fits in her hand. Had she ever been so small? “C’mon.”

She follows the trail at a deliberately casual pace. It helps keep her anxiety from roaring back up and keeps her gaze sharp on any shadows. She didn’t want to risk herself if she was wrong, but if she was right…

Melog took on ahead, her nose better at finding where they were going. The trail got messier. It looked like a fight. Catra pursed her lips at broken tree branches. It happened a while ago. 

Melog meowed. 

Catra peeked around a tree to see her cat in front of a rock. The outcrop loomed at the base of a hill, the bramble and tree roots keeping the base of it unclimbable. Her cat meowed again and brushed her paw against the roots. 

“In there?” Catra pet’s Melog. “Good girl.”

Her cat made a pleased noise as she sat in place. Catra moved around her to get a better view of the rocks. A space underneath the rocks could barely be made out through the brush. Her ear twitched. Someone was breathing in there. 

“I know you’re in there.” She calls. “Come on out.”

She doesn’t get a response. Catra frowns, rubbing her arm. The situation was odd. She wasn’t sure if she should be aggressive or gentle. She had no idea what she was dealing with. With a huff, she let her claws out. Keeping her jacket sleeves up to shield from the branches, she started cutting down the more mischievous brambles. 

A whimper had her faltering. 

She glances back at Melog. Her cat tilts her head. 

“Um,” Catra winces, “...right.”

She crouches low and moves under the bushes. She had to flick a few courageous branches away but made it through without much noise. Moonlight barely touches underneath the rock, but Catra’s eyes make out enough.

It’s a child. 

The blonde hair catches Catra’s eye first, short and messy on her head- oh _-_ and blue eyes swimming with tears - _oh ._ She’s curled up as small as possible into the back of the rock. Her legs are limp in front of her. One of them is missing a shoe. 

_Oh._ Catra swallows dryly. Her chest felt tight. _This is familiar._

“Hey.” She lowers her voice, wincing at how loud even a whisper felt. “Hey, shhh, I’m not here to hurt you.”

The child shakes her head. Catra’s eyes catch how she uses her arms to vainly lift herself away. She’s not using her legs at all. 

“Did you get hurt?” Catra cautiously reaches a hand out. “It’s okay. I can help.”

The child whines and hides her face. Catra’s heart trembles. Memories and emotions are tugging at her head. She’d really like nothing more than to crawl back off this rock and head home. Her wives were much better at this kind of stuff then she was. 

Awkwardly, she keeps her arm out, “My name’s Catra. I live in Brightmoon. What about you?”

Watery blue eyes peer up at her. Fear and panic are still there, but a mote of curiosity is in them and Catra latches onto that. 

“It’s okay.” She rambles. “Er, I mean, obviously you’re hurt and not okay. But it, it can _be_ okay if you, uh, trust me?”

She grimaces. _That was awful._

A shuffling drags her attention back to the child. She’s trembling on her arms as she sits up, but she’s looking at Catra with blooming hope. Catra meshes her mouth into a thin line. The kid looked so much like Adora it was breaking her. 

“That’s good.” She says, her voice cracking a little. “I’ll help you out. Can you reach me?”

It’s a slow process. The child whines at every movement, her face pale whenever she jostles her legs. She shuffles closer to Catra. Catra figures that’s enough incentive to reach forward. 

“I’m going to help you.” She announces awkwardly. “It might hurt a bit. Just, um, bear with me.”

The rock presses against her back as she crawls further in. She winces at how small the space is. She can barely breathe. Carefully, she moves her arm around the child’s waist. A sharp yelp has her freezing.

“What is it? What’s wrong?” She feels her ears go flat when all the child does is cry. “Hey, c’mon. It’s…”

_It’s okay Catra! I promise!_

She breathes out shakily, “...It’s gonna be okay.”

“Promise?” The voice is quiet, so tiny Catra imagines if she had different ears she wouldn’t have heard it. A part of her rips and screams, wanting nothing more than to forget she even heard it. Another part of her aches, a wistfulness born of three years of longing rising up and smothering her.

She manages a weak laugh, “Jeez, okay. I promise. Feel better?”

“Mm.” Little hands are wrapping around her arm and she takes that as her que. She lifts and- _stars they are so tiny-_ and carefully crawls backwards out of the hole. It’s hard not to jostle the child’s legs and she hisses frantic apologies every time she does. Melog is a warm sight as she finally gets clear of the bramble. Her legs wobble as she stands, hooking her arm underneath the child’s legs to better support them. 

Now, in the light of the moon, she can see long gashes on each limb. She winces. 

“Let’s go get you patched up.” She says. 

The kid buries their head into her shoulder, discovers she’s wearing a jacket, and then starts to bury herself in Catra’s jacket. It makes her laugh, amused at the kinda cute antics of a kid. Even in Catra’s arms they are making themselves as small as possible. 

“Can you tell me your name?” Catra asks as she carries the child back in the direction of the festival. “Any parents' names?”

A shake of the head. 

A bead of panic worms its way into Catra’s heart but she ignores it. “That’s okay, I don’t have parents either.” Was that an okay thing to say? “I think I turned out okay.” Maybe.

A small giggle. 

Catra’s ears perk up. Her heart is almost out of her throat and the shaky smile on her face is euphoric. She looks down to check and see’s blue eyes looking up at her. 

“Hey.” She says, unsure what to say. “What’s your name?”

The child doesn’t say anything. She turns her head into Catra’s jacket, every blonde strand of hair disappearing underneath it. Catra smiles helplessly at Melog. 

_Great._ She exhales to calm herself down. _This is bad._

“I’m going to take you to an infirmary.” She hesitates on her words. How old was this kid? Did they know what an infirmary was? “Uh, healers. For your legs. To get you patched up. Yeah.”

A nod. 

If her hands weren’t full of _injured child_ she’d be gripping her hair in frustration, “...Do...you like candy?”

Blonde hair pokes out again to look up at her. The interest gives Catra a little hope to salvage this. 

“My wife has some really tasty candy saved.” She says lightly, “I think you’d like it. It’s green and crunchy.”

Another nod, less meek then before. Catra considers that a win. 

She avoids the festival. As a last minute idea, she sends one of the guards off with a message to her wives. Hopefully there wasn’t a kingdom wide hunt for her out in the woods already. She figures it’s out of her hands. Showing up with a bloody kid in her arms wouldn’t be the best way to approach a crowd of people. 

“Real quick.” She stops outside their bedroom. The guard shadowing her was polite enough to open the door for her and, yeah, she’ll admit being a princess has some perks. Never out loud. She gives a nod and receives one in return. 

The child is peering around with wide eyes, her earlier fright returning. Catra gently sets them down on Adora’s desk, being extra careful to keep their legs propped. The kid wasn’t grimacing in pain so much anymore, but it was still worrisome.

“Here we go.” She rifles around in the dresser before finding Glimmer’s stash of the week. “It’s my other wives candy, but they like the same kind of sweets.”

She presents the candy in her palm. The child blinks in confusion.

“You eat it.” Catra says and then feels heat on her neck. “You, uh, you know what candy is right?”

“Yeah.” She whispers, cautiously taking it out of Catra’s hand. They fiddle with it, running their finger along the bar before giving a tiny nibble. Her eyes go wide before looking up at Catra in awe. “It’s good!”

Catra smirks, “You’re eating genuine space candy, kid.”

“Space…” The child holds the candy close, “Can I have this?”

“Sure.” She can’t help herself as her hand reaches forward, a gentle sweep through their blonde hair. It’s wildly tussled, almost as short as hers were after the war. She pauses after she does it, but the kid doesn’t seem to mind as they fish in their pockets for a good spot for their new treasure. “All good?”

“Mm.” They reach out their arms. 

Catra absolutely does not melt, “Yup. Up you go.”

The trip to the healers is quiet. Melog’s light guides the way there, though Catra could probably walk it in her sleep. The healer who greets them gives her a baffled look and it settles into _why am I surprised._ Catra gifts her a bland look in return. 

“We’ll take care of her.” The healer offers. “Help her find her family in the morning. She’ll recover here in the meantime.”

“Thanks.” Catra says. 

The healer holds their arms out and Catra is halfway through the motion to hand the kid over when their tiny arms shoot up around her neck like a koala. A terrified whimper is muffled into Catra’s shoulder. Frantically, she rubs the child's back.

“Hey, hey, shhh, it’s okay. This is one of the healers I mentioned.” She winces. “Sorry, I should have, uh, said something. You’ll be fine.”

A shake of the head. 

“Uh.” She gives a desperate look to the healer. They look just as lost as her. “I’ll come see you in the morning. How’s that sound?”

Another head shake. 

_Was I ever this bad as a kid?_ Catra laments. “I’m right down the hall. I promise.”

The kid hesitates. They peer up at her tearfully and, _why_ stars _why_ the blue eyes? Catra’s resolve crumbles like a dam before a river and it’s a river of children's tears. Her wives are laughing somewhere she just knows it.

“Okay.” She feels her shoulder droop in defeat, “Okay, okay, I’ll stay here. Happy?”

The small, hopeful smile that blooms on the child’s face is almost worth it. 

.

.

“Catra?”

She sleepily turns her head into the pillow. Something moves in her arms and she hears a tiny gasp. _Not wife_ her sleep deprived brain tells her. She cracks an eye open to find Adora leaning over her. 

“Hey you.” Her wife smiles with relief. “We were worried about you. Got your message.”

“Is this her?” Glimmer’s voice pulls her to the other side of the infirmary bed. The child in her arms is awake, gazing up at Glimmer in horror and awe. Her wife coos, “Aw, hey, you’re adorable. What’s your name?”

A squeak and the child is buried in her arms, head fully hidden in her jacket. Catra considers her options and decides the kid has the right idea. She tilts her head into the pillow with a happy sigh. 

Adora laughs quietly, “Catra, c’mon. You can’t spend all night here.”  
  


“Princess power.” Catra mumbles. “It’s my one ability. It’s very efficient.”

Glimmer’s hand cards through her hair and _oh yes that’s nice._ She sighs, letting the tension in her back fade. The bed dips as Adora sits down. 

“What’s her name?” Adora asks.

“I dunno.” Catra idly feels her hand running through short blonde locks. “Found her out in the woods. One broken leg and one with bad scratches.” 

Glimmer presses a feathery kiss to her temple and, no, that’s not what’s going to happen. She’s chasing her wife’s lips and hums happily into her kiss. A missed night with her wives is made up, she decides. Glimmer smiles. 

“You did good.” She says. Catra tries to fight the blush screaming up her neck. The praise rings nicely in her head. _You're good with kids._ Stars, why’d she have to remember that _now?_

“Hey, come out.” She whispers to the child hiding in her arms. “Come say hi to my wives. They don’t bite.”

“No fangs here.” Glimmer teases. 

Cautiously, the child peers out at them. Watery blue eyes look up at Catra beseechingly. Catra almost tells her _no it’s fine you don’t have to meet them_ but swallows it down. That was an embarrassment waiting to happen.

“I’m Glimmer.” Her wife whispers, her wings fluttering out. _Show off._ It certainly got the child wide eyed. “I’m a princess.”

“A princess.” The kid hides under Catra’s arm. 

“Oh boy.” Adora mumbles, “Should I even say anything?”

“Go on.” Glimmer nudges her, “You’ll look rude.”

Catra snorts. 

Shyly, her wife mumbles, “I’m Adora. Um, I’m also a princess! ...yeah.”

“Princesses.” The child squeaks, hiding further into Catra’s arms. Catra almost wants to make a joke about that. Something along the lines of _this kid was made for me_ but that thought is dangerous and she forces it down, _no._

“How’s the legs?” Glimmer asks, leaning forward to inspect what she could. “It looked like it hurt a lot.”

“She’s fine.” Catra murmurs. “She was asleep until you two came in.”

Glimmer smiles at her. Butterflies flutter in her head and she’d like nothing more than to take her girl into a searing kiss. But. Child. _Right_. She looks down at them and finds them gazing up at her with the same swimming blue. 

“You’re kinda a crybaby, huh?” Catra mutters.

“Catra.” Adora admonishes. “Don’t be mean.”

“They’re so adorable.” Glimmer coos. “What should we call her?”

Catra sputters, “You can’t- hey, no. We aren't naming this kid.”

“She doesn’t have a name, right?” Her wife guesses. 

“We don’t know that.” 

Adora hums, “We might never know. Maybe, a nickname? Just something temporary.”

Grudgingly, Catra tilts her chin down to whisper to the child, “That's okay with you?”

A tearful nod is all she gets. Catra exhales. There was a lot she could call the kid. Crybaby, Mini Adora, and Problem were all top winners. She grimaces at herself and goes for the safer option.

“River.” She decides. 

Glimmer gives her a look, “Really?”

“It’s temporary, babe.” She sticks her tongue out. “And it’s only till we find her parents.”

“Right.” Adora says, as if she’s been pulled out of a daze. “Her parents.”

That stops Catra short. Her tail nervously curls around her own leg. She knows that's the plan, knows that’s absolutely what must happen. Entertaining the idea of- she just _found_ this kid, there’s no way-

“C’mere.” She reaches over and tugs on Adora’s shirt. “I’m cold.”

“It’s crowded.” Adora yelps as she’s dragged down. River mirrors the noise almost perfectly and is practically climbing into Catra’s jacket. Catra shoots her wife a look. 

Adora frowns, “What? You dragged me-”

“Shush.” Glimmer laughs, laying down to cuddle into Catra’s back. “We’re bunking out here tonight.”

“But the healers-”

“My castle. My rules.”

Adora sighs. Quietly, her wife whispers, “As long as...River is okay?”

Catra doesn’t even have to ask. There’s a somewhat panicked nod into her chest and she smiles at her wife. 

“She’s okay.” She gives Adora a kiss on the nose. “Stop worrying.”

Adora opens her mouth, pauses, then relaxes. She says, “Okay.”

“Okay.” Catra echoes. 

They share a meaningful silence, something gaping and different. Adora’s blue eyes are knowing but calm. An ocean of understanding, of turmoil and heartache. Her wife knows and she relaxes. 

“Goodnight girls.” Glimmer sleepily yawns. 

“Goodnight.”

Catra waits till they're all asleep, till the bundle in her arms stops squirming. Her heart is trembling and she feels scared. Something new is happening, something they aren’t acknowledging yet. Maybe it’s nothing. Maybe they’ll find the kids parents. 

_And if we don’t?_

Catra knows that answer. She doesn’t have to feel her arm tightening around the child- _River -_ to know how she feels about it. 

She sleeps restlessly. 


	28. Chapter 28

.

.

It’s too hot.

Way too hot to be arguing, Adora thinks. She stares up at the cloudless sky and wishes just one little puff of white would appear. A little reprieve from the summer sun would be nice. Swift Wind must sense her melting when a colorful wing is lifted above her head. The shade is so nice she  _ sighs.  _

“Do we really have to leave now?” Catra’s voice is hoarse. Adora can imagine her wife is dying from the heat worse than any of them. She blames the sun on their worsening mood. “Can’t we just say we’re busy?”

Glimmer sighs, “I wish, but this was already planned a month back. It’d be rude.”

“So?”

“ _ So  _ the quicker we get this meeting done, the better.” Glimmer continues in a no-nonsense tone. “One hour meeting, tops. And maybe then the fire princess will stop trying to melt Etheria.” 

Catra hums, “And if she refuses?”

“We have She-Ra.”

“Pew pew.” Adora says. 

Swift Wind lowers his head to whisper, but it’s too loud for her wives not to hear, “Hey I can totally fly us there.”

“Yeah, hey.” Catra pokes her up above his flank with a scowl. “Why doesn’t Swifty just take Adora there? Why do we have to go?”

Adora pouts back at her, “Jeez, fine, get rid of me.”

“Because it’s weird.” Glimmer rubs her chin thoughtfully. “The fire kingdom is very similar to Frosta’s kingdom. They stayed neutral throughout the war. While I don’t  _ like  _ that they did, I can understand their reasoning. Fire is destructive and uncontrollable when set loose.” She hums. “Plus, Fire is a big weakness for the Alliance. If the Horde had used that against us-”

“Yeah, yeah.” Catra huffs. “I get it.”

“So they stayed hidden?” Adora guessed.

Glimmer snorts, “It’s hard to hide a volcano. They kept themselves fortified through magma. I think we only got one or two messages that they’d been attacked, but nothing that got past their walls.”

Adora looks at Catra. Catra shrugs, “I didn’t know  _ everything  _ that went down with the Horde.”

“Huh.” 

Glimmer continues, “Mom has a lot of respect for the fire kingdom. Their intellectuals, scholars, historians-”

Adora rubs her face tiredly, “You’re never gonna let me hear the end of that, are you?”

“-and they have huge libraries.” Glimmer smiles, “They aren’t fighters. They can be reasoned with.”

“So, we head to the fire kingdom and tell them to turn down the sun.” Catra mutters. “I’d rather not get my tail singed.”

Adora silently agrees. It was already sweltering. Going into a volcano sounded awful right now. That and while she’d spent her years of peacetime studying, she can barely keep up with George and Lance in a conversation. A super smart stranger? She’s gonna leave the talking to Glimmer. 

“You can head back if you want.” Glimmer looks over her shoulder at them, something soft creeping into her expression, “I’m worried too.”

Catra’s shoulders slump, “...No, I’ll stay.”

Adora winces and tries not to think about the ki-  _ River.  _ A problem was waiting back at home and they really needed to talk about it. For now, it seemed to be put on the back burner. 

_ It's too hot to think.  _ She sighs. 

.

.

It got worse.

Of course it gets worse, it’s a volcano. Why did she agree to this? The fire kingdom is nestled up at the top of a mountain  _ spewing molten heat  _ and she’d already been sweating herself to an early grave. Glimmer is taking it better then her at least. It might be a spell. Catra was suffering more than them and Adora had guiltily given her wife her spot underneath Swift Wind’s wing. Her wife was practically purring as the feathers fanned her. 

Mulishly, Adora looked at the volcano, “Do we have to?”

“You can always go back.” Glimmer teased from ahead. 

Great. Now her pride is on the line. She sighs and trudges after her wife. The sound of Swift Wind’s hooves follow behind her. 

The fire kingdom is clean. She’d expected molten craters and scary gargoyles, but it’s a well put together fortress. The fiery bricks are lined with glowing molten rocks. It casts the castle in a phoenix glow. It looks really cool. The spires reach up into the ash clouds, crimson banners caught in the heat. 

She breathes and it itches a little. Her chest feels too tight. She blames it on the smoke 

“Catra?” Glimmer calls, slowing her stride. “How’re you doing?”

“I’ll be fine when we leave.” Catra grumbles. 

“She might die.” Swift Wind says helpfully. 

Adora watches her wife disappear up ahead. There’s a startled yelp behind her that has her cracking a grin. She turns her head and- there’s her wives, cuddled beneath Swift Wind’s wing. Catra looks uncomfortable with the heat, until Glimmer unfurls her own wings and adds more breeze to the equation. 

“Okay.” Catra sighs. “I guess I love you.”

“You guess.” Glimmer snorts, eyes dancing with laughter. “Maybe I should go walk with Adora. She’d appreciate me more.”

Catra wraps her arms around her, “No.”

Glimmer shoots her a playful wink. Adora smiles fondly back, her heart beating a familiar rhythm in her chest. It stutters oddly, but she ignores it. 

They continue up the mountain.

.

.

The fire princess is married. 

She has a daughter. 

It’s very hot. 

These are three things that float in Adora’s brain while she sits dutifully beside her wives. Swift Wind, while brave enough to not want to leave Adora’s side, wasn’t brave enough to sit in a room with running lava on the wall. He’d kindly waited for them outside. Adora was jealous. 

The room was practically on fire. No, it  _ was  _ on fire. There wasn’t anything to look at that wasn’t bright, ouch,  _ hot.  _ She was conscious of how sweaty she felt. Meanwhile the fire princess and her wife looked well put together in their crimson robes and fancy golden headdresses. They smiled and talked and were, thankfully, agreeing with Glimmer. That summer needed to cool off. Maybe they'd agree to cool down the room too. That'd be something. 

“Frosta’s kingdom will give a flurry for a few days.” Glimmer was saying. “And Scor- I mean, the Storm kingdom would be even more willing to generate a few storms for you. It won’t last long. Just to give the land time to regrow.”

“It’s agreeable terms.” The princess was nodding along. Adora can’t see her face, not because it’s obscured, but because it’s fuzzy. Hot. Too much heat in the room. Wait, they were talking. “-with taking it into control. It’ll take a day, but we’ll have it done. We don’t want to risk an eruption.”

“Thank you.” Glimmer smiles like they aren’t in a volcano. Adora fights down proud tears. “Brightmoon will send a gift in the following week. We’re very grateful.”

“Thank you, Princess Glimmer.” The two bow their heads. “We’re honored to meet the saviors of Etheria. Please, would you stay for some tea?”

Adora winces, “Um, that’s actually-”

“Mom! Mom!” A small voice yells from under the table. “You said we’d play today!”

Both fire princess’s wince. Adora catches Catra beside her frowning, her claws tapping on the table. Adora herself feels that familiar twisting in her gut, her thoughts flying miles away back to Brightmoon. She watches as tiny hands claw at the fire princess’s dress. 

“Dear,” The princess lowered her head to scold the toddler, “you must wait until we are finished with our guests. It’s very rude to interrupt.”

“But you  _ promised!” _

Catra flinches. 

Adora turns her head. Her wife looked ill in the orange glow of the volcano. Something’s on her mind and it’s painting gauges into the table. 

“Catra,” Adora whispers, making sure the princesses are occupied with their daughter, “what’s wrong?”

“Nothing.” Her wife bites back and then louder, “We can wrap this up now if it’s convenient.”

The fire princess raises her head in surprise, “Oh, if you’re certain. We’d hate to be rude and not offer some of our kingdom’s hospitality. You won’t be staying?”

“We have some matters to attend to back home.” Glimmer replies smoothly. “We thank you for the offer. We’re looking forward to continued progress between our kingdoms.”

“Of course.” The princess smiles. 

There’s a few more pleasantries exchanged. The princesses walk them out, their daughter toddling behind She-Ra with wide eyes. Adora finds this cute, if only the ache in her chest wasn’t so loud. She catches Glimmer’s eye behind Catra's back. Her wife nods, worry sparking across her face. Adora wasn't the only one aching. 

Swift Wind greets them as they leave, “Hey that was quick.”

“Not quick enough.” Catra mumbles. “Lets go.”

“Catra.” Glimmer admonishes, but only because the fire princesses were still nearby. “We’ll be home soon.”

“Again. Not soon enough.” Catra scrunches her nose up as smoke wafts by, “Also why can’t we bring Frosta next time?”

“She’ll try to fight the mountain.”

“Fair.”

Adora snickers. It tears at her throat a little and- wow, she really needs a drink of water. It’s too dry. Even worse is the sweat she can feel between her fingers. She grimaces. Catra’s  _ move quicker  _ attitude wasn’t so bad if they finally got out of this heat. 

And addressed what was bugging them. At home. 

Which- was what again? She knows it’s been bugging Catra and she’s been kind of down about it and Glimmer has been a little closed off about how she feels but- what had it been again?

She blinks. 

“Huh.” She says aloud. 

When had they gotten so far away? She blinks again at the retreating shapes of her wives, engrossed in conversation while Swift Wind walks beside them. It’s kinda fuzzy but that’s just the lava. Swift Wind turns his head sharply.  _ Probably _ just the lava. 

“Uh, guys.” His voice is that startled squeak he gets to when he’s being chased by something tiny. Adora kinda giggles at the memory. “Guys, Adora is-”

“Adora?” Glimmer calls. 

“Be right there!” Adora calls back but it comes out as  _ beeerrrre  _ as the world tilts sideways. She barely recognizes  _ dirt earth ouch  _ before it’s spotting out. Her head becomes a mess of oranges and shadows before it’s nothing at all. 

.

.

It’s cold. 

It’s  _ nice.  _

Catra is saying, “You moron.”

Adora feels the cool sheets over her and throws them over her head. The chill is so nice on her skin she sighs. Goosebumps prickle up her arms just over how warm and flushed she feels. A hand pats the top of the blankets. 

“Do you want to die?” Catra is asking, her voice exasperated but fond, “I can kill you right now if you want to jump into the volcano. Do you want to make me cry?”

“Not my fault.” Adora gumbles into her pillow. It’s practically an ice cube and it feels so good. “Where are we?”

“Welcome.” Frosta’s voice says dryly from somewhere in the room.

Glimmer sighs from beside the bed, “I don’t think we can go a day without having a problem.”

“Yeah, a volcano sounds like a big problem.” Frosta sniffs. “Want me to take care of it?”

“No. It’s a nice volcano.”

Swift Wind pipes up, “It’s really impressive how fast Adora fell down it.”

Adora groans. Above her, she can hear Catra snickering. The hand over the blankets wiggles underneath to run through her hair. It’s nice and she lets her overheated heart have this one. 

“Thanks.” She says, not sure to whom. 

“You’re welcome.” Frosta huffs, “Now I’ve got princess things to do. Just bug the guards if you need something.”

“Thank you Frosta.” Glimmer chimes in sweetly. “Adora would have died without you.”

“Hmmph.” A door closes. 

Catra says, “She would have been fine.”

“Frosta doesn’t know that.”

“Wow.”

Adora huffs a laugh. The hand in her hair tugs back the sheets. Catra is sitting beside her, eyes twinkling in the dark of icicles and snow. The cold air is so nice that Adora curls forward to put her head in her wife’s lap. 

“Greedy.” Catra accuses, but her hand is back in her hair. Adora hums happily. 

Glimmer’s wing brushes them as she sits down, “At least it wasn’t while we were in the meeting. We’d still be at the volcano.”

“Gross.”

Which reminds Adora of  _ why  _ they were so eager to leave. She grimaces. 

“Sorry.” She whispers. “I should be good in an hour to get home.”

“You sure?” Glimmer peers at her worriedly. 

“She-Ra.” She says. 

“Why are you apologizing?” Catra speaks up, her tone quiet with something Adora can’t identify. “It’s not your fault.”

Adora purses her lips. Catra has been dancing around the subject. She’s been the one most affected by these turn of events. Is it okay to bring it up now? Was now even a proper time?

“River.” 

Catra’s face crumples. It’s not a frown, but it’s heartbreaking to look at and Adora almost apologizes again. Glimmer is leaning forward to cure her, a kiss taking Catra by surprise. Her shoulders relax.

“...yeah.” Catra sighs. “We need to talk about that.”

“About her.” Glimmer echoes. 

Adora stares at the ceiling icicles and says, “She’s not ours.”

“No, no, definitely not.” Glimmer agrees, something panicked in her tone. “That’d be- especially if her parents- well, we can look after her.”

“For now?” Catra phrases it like a question, unsurety leaking into her voice, “This is...I don’t know what this is. I don’t know how to feel. I don’t even know if I like this.”

“It was really sudden.” Glimmer murmurs. 

Adora turns her head into Catra’s thigh. She ponders the child they found, knows the resemblance, feels something between affection and embarrassment. She sighs. 

“I think,” She picks her words carefully, “it’s not a bad idea.”

Her wives are quiet. Adora feels herself taken back years ago, to their bedroom where her wives gape at her from the bed. She takes a knee and the world moves on. Adora traces circles on Catra’s knee and wonders what will change now. 

“If her parents don’t show up-” Catra says tremulously. 

“We’ll deal with that.” Glimmer soothes, her own voice breaking. “It’s- I never actually thought of- never really wanted kids. Still kind of don’t.”

“You don’t?” Adora whispers. 

Glimmer winces, “...that’s not exactly true. I think I don’t know anymore. I like the  _ idea  _ I just- ...I don’t think I’m ready.”

“Get in line.” Catra sighs. 

Adora manages a weak laugh at that, “I don’t think I’ve ever been ready for anything in my life.”

“Marrying us?” Glimmer blows on Adora’s bangs playfully, “Saving the universe? Your first date?”

“You were there for all of those.” Adora grumbles. “You tell me.”

Her wives are giggling at her. It makes her heart flip flop, happiness bleeding into the ache in her chest. She lets herself relax, sinks into Catra’s arms, and breathes. 

“We’ll be okay.” She murmurs. “We have each other.”

“Don’t be sappy.” Catra says but her tone is soft. “I’m not carrying you to Brightmoon.”

“You won’t have to.”

“That’s my job!” Swift Wind chimes in. Adora glances over to find him sticking his head through the window, “Also what’s this about having a kid? What’d I miss?”

Adora see’s her opportunity and has a quick second to think  _ I need to ask Micah for more jokes  _ and says, “We’re just  _ kidding  _ around.”

Catra pinches her ear. It was worth it. 


	29. Chapter 29

.

.

Mornings were different. 

Glimmer wakes up groggily with sleep caked over her eyelids. She rubs it away, sluggish and tired and feeling gross. An arm is looped around her waist and she finds its owner chewing on the pillow in her sleep. Glimmer smiles at Catra. A devious part of her wanted to tease her awake. The softer part of her had her fingers brushing Catra’s hair out of her face. Her wife stirs. Her head turns into the pillow more, a brief ear flick following before a hand is reaching up to grab Glimmer’s wrist.

“Good morning.” Glimmer says. 

_ Mmmph  _ is Catra’s muffled reply. Glimmer watches quietly as her hand is snatched close to Catra’s chest, her wife curling around it and pressing a sleepy kiss to her knuckles. 

“Mine.” Catra mumbles. 

Glimmer lets herself fall forward, following her captured hand and nuzzling her way into her wife’s arms. Catra complies with a lazy huff. She doesn’t let go of Glimmer’s hand. Glimmer never wants her to. It’s the best way to wake up. In fact, if there’s a day she doesn’t wake up in her wife’s arms, then it’s cursed from the get go.

“What time is it?” Catra groans, burying her face into Glimmer’s hair. “Too early. Too bright.”

“Shhh.” Glimmer whispered, amusement tugging her lips up into a fond smile. “You’ll wake them up.”

“Hmm.” A lazy tail flick brushes her legs. “How’d she sleep?”

Glimmer glances over Catra’s shoulder. Nestled up against her back was Adora, hair loose and a complete mess over their pillows. It was getting long, like a golden curtain that went all the way down her back. Glimmer wouldn’t hesitate to call the sight gorgeous, if a bit of drool wasn’t making a spectacular appearance on her wife’s pillow. Glimmer had to sit up a bit to see the space between Catra and Adora. There, curled up as small as possible in Adora’s arms, was River. Glimmer’s eyes trailed down to her legs where the stark white of bandages stood out against the midnight bed sheets. She was safely held by Adora’s arm. No accidental injuries in the night. 

“Better.” Glimmer relaxes back into her wife’s arms. “She didn’t want to sit still.”

Catra makes a long, tired noise. Her breath brushes Glimmer’s cheek and it’s distracting. She uses her elbow as leverage to lean up, meeting blue and yellow and a sultry smirk. 

“Hey birdie.” Catra drawls, a lot of her flirtation lost in a yawn. “You missed a step.”

“Oh?” Glimmer brushes her nose against her’s. “What’s that?”

“I think you know.” 

Catra’s kiss is languid and soft. Glimmer flows, runs her fingers over Catra’s shirt, lets their hands twine together. The devious part of her rears up again and she slips her hand under Catra’s shirt. There’s a startled hiss and a hand batting her away. She muffles her snickers into Catra’s shirt. 

“There’s a  _ child.”  _ Catra grumbles. “You seriously need a leash.”

“Why is your head in the gutter?” Glimmer teased. “I was only cuddling.”

“You’re not slick.”

A disgruntled noise beside them has them pausing. Rising from the grave is Adora, blinking blearily at the wall like she has no idea how she got there. Knowing how dead to the world Adora gets when she sleeps, it makes Glimmer giggle. 

“Good morning.” She recites. 

“Mern...in’.” Adora’s response fizzles and dies as quickly as she drops her head back onto the pillow with a  _ womp.  _ A startled squeak follows. That’s how Glimmer loses Catra, her wife’s ears swiveling to the noise like a planet orbiting the sun. She turns to the child squished in Adora’s arms. 

“Hey,” Catra’s voice breaches a softness that should be against the law, “morning, kiddo. How’s the legs?”

River peaks over Adora’s bicep. Her blonde hair is wild with bedhead, a few strands she pulls out of her mouth. Adora’s arms practically swallow her. Glimmer has to bite her lip down  _ hard  _ to stop the doting ready to come out. They’d already learned that coddling frightened her. Adora had only made it worse by calling her  _ bunny  _ on a few occasions. It was too cute for words. 

River didn’t say anything. The child turned her head up, squinting tiredly through her bangs up at Catra. There’s a helplessness in them that has Catra smirking. Glimmer watches them fondly,  _ her girls. _

“Yeah, she’s a cuddler.” Catra leans over to press a kiss to the top of Adora’s head, “Hey, wake up, you have a hostage.”

“Mmm.” Blue eyes creak open at them, blink, before Adora says, “Too early.”

River’s eyes get a little wide with fear. Probably at being held captive any longer. Glimmer laughs, “You're scaring her, Adora.”

Her blonde winces tiredly, glancing down to the kid in her arms. A mumbled apology and her wife is rising, stretching above their heads. Glimmer sighs, delighted in the echo she hears from Catra. Everything about Adora’s arms was a dream come true. 

Adora gifts them a dry look, “Are you two going to sleep in?”

“Yup.” Glimmer grins, snuggling closer to Catra, “We woke you up to go do stuff for us while we schmooze.” 

“ _ Schmooze?”  _ Catra’s voice rises high, “What the heck does that even mean-”

“Not in front of River.” Adora sniffs, stepping out of her blanket cocoon with another stretch, “If you two are going to be criminals in bed then I’m taking her with me.”

“Criminals?” Glimmer repeats, affronted. 

Catra laughs. 

.

.

Breakfast was different. 

Despite Adora’s claims, her mother claimed River under her wing as soon as they converged into the dining hall. Glimmer felt warmth up her neck anytime her mom tosses her knowing, thoughtful smiles. Her parents were always eager to embarrass her about their newest addition. Her dad laughed and ruffled her hair like she wasn’t in her late twenties. 

“Cereal or oatmeal?” Catra called, her voice behind the kitchen door. One of the kitchen staff yelped, meaning her wife was manhandling her way into her own meal. “Girls?”

“If we answer with yes, what do you think she’ll do?” Adora mumbles into the table. 

Mom chuckles, “I think we should be asking our littlest one what she wants.”

“How’s about it?” Her dad is beaming down at River, “Oatmeal sounds pretty cool huh?”

River grimaces. Her dad's face crumpling with despair is so funny Glimmer laughs. Catra must have taken matters into her own hands when she returned with pancakes and eggs, the kitchen staff following with tired amusement. Somehow River gravitates back to Catra, hiding in her wife’s lap and behind her jacket. Every once in a while a piece of food disappears from Catra’s plate. 

Glimmer shares a sly look with Adora. Her wife winks back. 

.

.

She feels different. 

It’s moonlight being her only guide. Wandering fingers caress her shoulders and draw a wistful sigh from her lips. The pillows by her head are a cascade of golds, pinks, and umber. Mismatched eyes find her and trail kisses down her neck. In the dark she can hear giggles and teases and hushed words. She twines her fingers with half her heart and brings them down for a searing kiss. 

A hesitant knock at the door freezes them in their tracks. 

Adora rears back as if stung, which knocks her head into Catra’s. Her wife  _ oomphs  _ but uses the momentum to scramble off the bed, cradling her nose while rushing to the door. Glimmer watches, clutching her chest to calm her racing heart. Catra crouches when she opens the door, her quiet voice reaching that level of care for only one person. 

“Catra?” Adora calls, rubbing her head, “Who is it?”

Catra glances over before smiling apologetically. Glimmer understands immediately when a small head of blonde peers into the room.  _ No fun tonight.  _

“I think she had a bad dream.” Her wife whispers, opening her arms a little. River rushes into the embrace, a tiny whimper her only greeting. “Shhh, it’s okay.”

Glimmer is already moving off the bed, taking a moment to fix her shirt before walking over. She can see the swimming tears in River’s eyes behind Catra’s arms before the child curls further and hides. Catra's face is contorting between ill and heartbroken. Memories of the Horde likely rearing its head. Glimmer lets her wings draw them in. 

“Do you want to talk about it?” She asks, but already knows it won’t be spoken of. River didn’t speak much. It was a worrisome trait that required careful conversation. Even after a few months since they’d discovered her, almost nothing was known about her. 

She’s tempted to  _ dream raid _ , but decides against it. River didn’t need a heart attack like that. 

“Hey bunny.” Adora whispers over them, “I know what’ll cheer you up.”

River peeks out tearfully. 

Adora smiles, “I bet you’ve never made a pillow fort with She-Ra.”

.

.

It’s different and she realizes it too late. 

A piggy back ride was a step up from River’s hiding. There was curiosity and interest in her surroundings when before there’d been fear and apprehension. Glimmer felt her sigh of relief echoed in her wives. The garden was a good enough spot to start. It was just her, a shy child hooking her arms around her neck and cradled by her wings. 

“My dad does a lot of the gardening.” Glimmer was explaining, “Well kinda. Mom is here now and, heh, I don’t think I’ve ever seen them so happy.”

A soft noise. Glimmer smiles, “If you ask him, he’d love to show you how to garden. It’s pretty easy. I don’t mean to brag, but I’m an expert myself.”

“Garden princess.” River whispers. 

Glimmer laughs, “No, no that’s Perfuma. Go ahead and call her that when you meet her, she’ll be overjoyed.”

She takes their walk through the hedges, passing a comical rendition of Swift Wind that has River perking up, and leafy sculptures of animals. It’s a kids dream judging by the awe dancing in the child's eyes. Glimmer feels smug satisfaction. Catra may be the favorite but at least she was the  _ fun  _ mo-

She stops in her tracks. 

River makes a small inquisitive noise. Glimmer barely hears it over her own head lighting itself on fire. It’s a realization that strikes her down on the spot, roots her in place and tilts her world. It’s terrifying. She takes a deep breath in and struggles not to scream.

_ When,  _ she thinks dizzily,  _ when did I start thinking of her as my kid? _

“Hey, hey.” River sounds frightened. “Something’s coming.”

Glimmer hears herself say  _ huh  _ eloquently, but her eyes find the hedges moving.  _ Something  _ plows through the brush as if it was grass, rearing up above the garden like a gargoyle. It’s blue scaled with many dangerous fangs and way too many eyes on something with four legs. It scuttles like an insect. From it’s maw, a piece of fabric dangles on its razor teeth. Her memories take her back to months ago.

_ That,  _ her brain foggishly registers,  _ was part of River’s shirt.  _

She’s crouching down. River fearfully clings to her, not letting go. Glimmer takes a deep breath, wills it out as calm as she can, and turns her back on the danger. She faces River-  _ her child-  _ with a reassuring smile. 

“Hey.” She gives a kiss to River’s forehead. “It’ll be fine. I’ve got you.”

Teary eyes look at her fretfully. It’s a pitiful sight and it shakes her heart. She grabs her child's shoulder firmly. 

“Go for the castle.” She whispers. “Don’t look back.”

A very shaky nod. A hesitation dripping with tears. A small hand clinging to her sleeve. It’s those little things that bring warmth to the coldness in Glimmer’s chest. 

Glimmer smiles, “I’m not going anywhere. I’ve fought much meaner and nastier things then this guy.”

Another nod, less afraid and more awed. She lets her hand go and watches River scramble back the way they came, disappearing into the garden. The  _ something’s  _ thunderous footsteps are lumbering towards her. She exhales. 

“Right.” She flexes her fingers, anger sparking under her palm. “This is what you get for making her cry.”

.

.

“Glimmer?”

She winced, cradling her arm close to her. She’d have to apologize to dad later. A lot of the garden had gotten flattened. She’d definitely gone overboard. She didn’t regret it, but she was annoyed it had gotten a hit in. A smoking hole beside her made her feel a little better about it.

Adora was crouched in front of her, She-Ra’s light blinding her and making her warm. Her wife was smiling, happy and proud and worried all at once.

“Where’s the rest of it?” She asked.

“Over there.” She pointed at a crater. “And maybe some more over there, I don’t know.”

Catra snorted, but her eyes were relieved, “And your arm?”

“She-Ra.” She pushes her arm forward. “Heal me.”

“Yes ma’am.” 

They sit quietly with each other, the crackling remnants of the garden around them the only thing breaking the stillness. Catra shifted on her feet, face twisted down into a frown. Tension was thick in the air. 

Adora breaks it first, “She came to us.”

“Good.” Glimmer sighs. “That’s good.”

“She…” Adora hesitates, her eyes flicking to Catra. Her wives share a meaningful gaze before she says, “She called you mom.”

Glimmer’s breath hitches. Her earlier freak out walks back into her head with a happy explosion. It makes her dizzy and she drops her head into her hands. Adora soothingly rubs her shoulder. 

“This might not be temporary anymore.” Catra says, her voice strained. “This might be-”

“Yeah.” Glimmer shakily breathes. “Stars, we’re, we’re going to be-”

“Easy.” She-Ra’s light flicks out and Adora nervously holds her, blue eyes a reflection of- of-  _ oh stars _ she was going to be sick. “Glimmer, take it easy.”

“We’re  _ parents,  _ oh my god.”

“Could be worse.” Catra sounds like she swallowed a lemon. “Could have been a lot worse.”

“How so?”

“Her parents could have turned up.”

And that burns something inside her, twists her heart in a direction she didn’t think it could go. It hurts to think about. Judging by Adora’s and Catra’s expressions, it hurts them too. Glimmer manages a weak laugh. 

“We’re hopeless.” She sniffles. “This is going to be awful.”

“Not entirely.” Adora protests, her thumb wiping her tears. “I think we’ve been doing a great job.”

“Yes, taking care of her. But  _ raising  _ her?” 

Adora looks away. Catra shifts uncomfortably, gaze darting back to the castle. Glimmer lets her nerves go, lets all her anxiety go, and breathes. 

“Sorry.” She rubs her face tiredly. “I’m snappy because I got attacked by a monster.”

Catra huffs, “Gave everyone a heart attack.”

“It was after River.”

Catra face draws back into that ill look, only it’s got a shadow over it that Glimmer hasn’t seen since Commander Catra opened the portal. Her wife spits on the ground and turns to her resolutely. 

“So we’ll mess up. We might not be the best. She might even hate us.” Catra looks at her sulkily. “I’m still going to  _ try. _ ”

Adora smiles, “Like I said, all we can do is our best.”

“Our best.” Glimmer looks at the ground. “Will that be enough?”

“Glim,” Catra crouches in front of her imploringly, “We’re doing this  _ together.  _ There’s three of us. It’s enough.”

“It’s enough.” Adora echoes softly. 

Glimmer sniffles. She opens her arms for a hug and her wives fall into it. Two different hugs embrace her. It soothes her, quiets the explosions in her head, brings her back to where she needs to be. There's a lot going on. Change is frightening and new and not pleasant. But Catra is kissing her shoulder and she has Adora humming into her hair, two different songs that uplift her heart high above the clouds. It’s different, but it’s not bad. She's not alone.

“Okay.” She says. “I’ll try.”


	30. Chapter 30

.

.

Catra weighed her options. 

On one hand, she could make brownies. But that seemed like too heavy of a treat for a simple girls night. She tapped her claws on the kitchen counter thoughtfully. The baking mixes in front of her taunted her. _Made with real chocolate_ exclaimed one box. 

“Wait, there’s fake chocolate?” She muttered, eyeing the other boxes distrustfully. 

On the other hand, she could make cupcakes. It didn’t require _suspicious chocolate_ that _may or may not be real_ (the friendly cartoon chocolate bar on the cover was _very_ suspicious). Catra squinted at the ceiling, chewing on her lip and shifting from foot to foot. 

“Cupcakes.” She decides. It was safer. 

One of the kitchen staff poked their heads in from time to time to check on her, but left her alone. When the door creaked open she expected it to be another checkup. She didn’t look towards it until her ears flicked towards the tiniest of movement. Someone was sneaking. 

Catra smiled. 

“Hmmm.” She said aloud. “I bet they’d like it if I added frosting.”

More shuffling feet. Experimentally, Catra moved over to the other side of the kitchen to retrieve a utensil. Featherlight footsteps shadowed her. She felt her heart swell. _My little cat's foot._

“Oh no.” She laid the dramatics on thickly as she looked at the counter. “I can’t find my measuring cup. That’s _definitely_ not on the table, I just checked. Hmmm, what will I do…”

Quiet footsteps retreat to the table. A scrap of something and a _tink_ of a glass jar being fumbled with. A small hand tugging at her pant leg. Catra finally allowed herself to look, amused at the sight of River holding said ‘lost’ cup. 

“Hey, there it is.” She says as she crouches down. Instead of taking the cup, she wraps her arms around her child. River makes a squeaky noise and clings to her. “Exactly what I was looking for.”

“Cup?” River asks. 

“Hm what?” Catra blinks innocently, “I wasn’t looking for that.”

River frowns. Catra lets her smile fall into a smirk and leans forward to pepper kisses over her child's face. River makes a noise as she sinks into Catra’s arms, the action so pitiful Catra laughs. 

“Alright.” She relents, letting her victim go. “Help me with this, would ya?”

It's a longer process of her stepping around her little helper. Armed with a tray in each hand and a small plate in River's, she leads them back out into the hall. It alarms her just how _tiny_ River is at times. She has to be consciously aware of where she steps or it might just end up on her daughter's head (and _wow_ that was a weird word). She was adjusting bravely.

The staff ran past her in a frenzy of activity. Guards nodded to her as she passed. She could hear a few excited whispers down the hall. Catra snorted. The Alliance was here and it was cause for panic apparently. 

She doubts a sleepover is enough to panic over.

The guest bedroom was heard before it was seen. Shouts and laughter made Catra’s ears twitch, heavy reluctance slowing her stride. She didn’t mind parties, but being in a room with princess powerhouses who had no volume control got overwhelming at times. 

River looked up at her worriedly. 

Catra melted, “Aw c'mon you’re way too young to be making that face. Can you open the door for me? We’ve got cupcakes to chow.”

River is just tall enough to turn the doorknob. Catra tries not to let this be as knee buckingly cute as it is. 

The guest bedroom has been converted into a She-Ra approved pillow fortress. Blankets drape over the softly lit room, tiny floating lanterns bobbing enchantingly because _magic._ Catra blew one out of her face. Scorpia had a sixth sense to her and popped her head up from a nearby cushion. 

“Oh hey!” She smiled widely, “We all thought you bailed! Not that, uh, we were saying bad things about you, heh.”

  
Glimmer’s voice is somewhere buried under pillows, “Oh yeah I was saying bad things about Catra.”

  
Adora is lounging next to said pillows and gifts her buried wife an affronted look, “No you didn’t? You were saying-”

“She loved your kitty ears!” Entrapta bursts out, looking like she might actually have a stroke from how happy she looks. “It was really cute-”

Frosta is hiding somewhere, the teenager grumbling about ‘gross flirting’. Catra ignores them and lifts her leg, letting River scamper out from behind her to find her other moms. Adora is the only one visible and thus the only target when her lap is robbed by a tiny child. River holds up the plate imploringly. 

“We brought cupcakes.” Catra announces dryly.

Adora beams down at River, “Aww are those for me?”

Now the center of attention, River visibly shrinks. A meek nod is all she gives. Adora laughs and takes the plate, setting it aside and letting her arms become an improvised security blanket. Catra watches this fondly, before setting the trays down. Glimmer’s hand darts out of her pile to snatch one. 

Catra stares, “Are you just gonna stay in there all night?”

“My castle.” Glimmer says. 

Mermista laughs, “Oh this is already off to a great start.”

Catra snorts and gazes around, taking a mental headcount. She’s pleased to note she made enough for everybody. A missing person pulls her up short and she hesitates, “Hey uh...did Perfuma say she was coming?”

Scorpia is carefully holding a cupcake between her claws, her tongue poking out with concentration. She blinks when she realizes everyone is staring at her, “Huh? Oh, uh, hi. Why would I know?”

“Not to be _that_ person,” Mermista drawls, “but she’s _always_ with you. Always.”

Adora hums, “You know I don’t think I’ve ever been to a meeting at the Fright- I mean, Kingdom of Storms without seeing Perfuma there.”

“Same with Plumeria.” Glimmer’s voice is muffled under blankets and cupcake. 

Scorpia is looking as red as her claws. She laughs sheepishly, “Ohhh well. I think it’s just. A gardening issue. It’s been budding- that is, uh. Just a gardening issue!” A very high laugh. “So! How’s River been?”

The subject change wasn’t subtle at all, Catra frowns. 

  
“She’s fine.” Adora says slowly, watching Scorpia like she doesn’t know what to say, “Is...Plumeria in trouble?”

“Trouble?” Scorpia parrots in a squeaky voice. Catra’s ears perk up and she blinks. She hasn’t seen Scorpia so flustered since- “No trouble. Definitely no trouble. A pint sized trouble. Haha.”

Catra feels her mouth part in shock. She makes a strangled noise that only sets off Scorpia again, the scorpion princess waving her claws frantically, “There’s nothing going on that needs to be worried about, just a, a regular flower problem. Budding. Small.”

“Right that makes sense.” Mermista’s sarcasm could dry up a desert. 

“Scorpia?” Glimmer pokes her head out, concern in her frown, “What’s wrong? Did something happen between you and Perfuma?”

“No.” Scorpia denied, but her face is red and she’s looking shyly away and Catra is violently reminded of the way she used to say _wildcat._ Catra’s shock becomes an epiphany and it feels like getting dropped on her head.

“You’re in _love._ ” She squawks, pointing at the princess with bewilderment. 

Scorpia yelps, “Hey, hey, let’s not jump to conclusions-”

“Ohhh.” Entrapta nods sagely. “ _Budding_ love. I get it.”

Mermista groaned. Adora looked delighted, “Scorpia you made a pun!”

“Is that what we’re focusing on?” Glimmer asked airily. 

Catra runs a hand over her face in exasperation. All of Perfuma’s lessons come back to her, but now with all the added gossip they do whenever they meet. Scorpia holding most of the flower princess’s attention did not escape her notice. That meant Scorpia’s crush wasn’t unrequited but only Catra knew that. Maybe. 

Scorpia looked at them with a nervous smile, “Ah um, we didn’t want to tell anyone-”

“ _We?”_ Glimmer lurches forward excitedly, “Are you two dating?”

“Dating is such a broad term-”

“They’re totally snogging.” Frosta groans. 

“Snogging?” Adora echoes confusedly. 

“Kissing.” Catra says. 

“Ohhh. _Oh.”_

Scorpia huffs, crossing her claws as best as she can and sending her cupcake into the wall. She didn’t seem to notice her blunder, “Well I think we’re, we’re pretty steady. Pretty okay. For a while now too! Just fine. No trouble.”

“Did you get into a fight?” Mermista asks bluntly. 

“No!” Scorpia pauses and clears her throat, “Sorry I raised my voice. I’m just, a little nervous about- um.”

She’s looking at River. Catra switches her gaze from Scorpia to River back to Scorpia and feels herself get dropped on her head again. It’s much more violent and definitely sends her sprawling into the pillows in horror. 

“Perfuma has a kid.” She chokes out. 

“What?!” Glimmer yells, eyes wide and happy. “Scorpia, what-”

“Hey, hey-” Scorpia looks just as baffled, “They just dropped out of a plant. Randomly! We don’t know what to do with them and we couldn’t just leave them there, no way. That’d be- well irresponsible firstly.” The scorpion shakes her head worriedly, “Are there books about kids that dropout of flowers? Is this a normal thing?”

Mermista looks pale, “Uh. No?”

Glimmer frowns, “Start from the beginning.”

“Well.” Scorpia rambles. “We were having a nice walk around Plumeria- lovely gardens and very well taken care of, heh. Uh. Anyways, I was like ‘what's that’ and Perfuma waved her hands like _fwoosh_ and _basshho_ and a bunch of vines made a giant rose. It was, _daww,_ it was really sweet you guys I might have cried but then she was like ‘oh that's weird’ and I was like ‘I’m sorry crying is weird’ and she said ‘no that’ and the rose _opened_ and now we have a child.”

Mermista wheezes. Catra blinks a few times, just to orient the universe shattering in her head. She can see Glimmer doing the same beside her. It didn’t help Scorpia did not breathe for any of that and looked even more flustered now. 

“Wow.” Adora murmurs, eyes full of sincerity. “That’s terrifying I’m sorry. I’d have no idea what to do if that happened to me.”

“Adora.” Catra sighs. _She-Ra, ladies and gentlemen._ “You’re literally holding River.”

She can see the lightbulb ignite over her wife’s head. With too much excitement, Adora beams at Scorpia, “We can help you!”

“You can?” Scorpia smiles with equal parts excitement. 

“Help is a weird way of putting it.” Catra mumbled. “We’re not exactly child raising experts here.”

Scorpia’s face turns purple and she squeaks, “Raising?”

Oh. Oops. 

_Dropped that on her a little too soon I guess,_ Catra offers her a sympathetic look. The internal crisis was one she was familiar with. Mermista gives Scorpia a single, uncertain pat on the back. 

“Heyyy.” The sea princess draws out uncomfortably. “I’m sure. You’ll. Figure it out.”

“Coming from Mermista, that's practically a blessing.” Glimmer teased. 

Scorpia looks both parts dazed and ashen faced as she mumbles, “Have I said _I love you_ yet? Is this a step forward or back? Is there a chart I should be keeping track of?”

Entrapta popped her head above her tech corner of metal bits, “I can make a chart!”

“Oh boy.” Catra sighed, letting the subject drop. “What are you even working on, genius?”

“My greatest creation yet!” The scientist waves around a communicator pad like it’s a frisbee. “It’s gonna take awhile to build, but I’m so excited for the possibilities! Endless possibilities! My own special invention!” She finishes with a cackle. 

Mermista smiles dryly, “At least someone’s having fun.”

“We’re having fun?” Frosta asked, throwing herself down on nearby pillows with a huff, “Can we do something that’s _not_ gossiping?”

Adora perks up, “Hey speaking of which, how's that book-”

“Zip it!” Frosta shrieks. “I vote for board game.”

“Same.” Catra glanced at Scorpia, “You okay over there?”

“Huh?” The scorpion princess blinked, “Uh. Yeah! What are we playing?”

Glimmer laughs, “Oh I have just the thing.”

“Yes!” Frosta grins, “What is it?”

“Have you ever heard of Betrayal at Castle on the Hill?”

.

.

Catra listens to the sounds of princess’s sleeping. Her ears flick to the tunes of soft breathing and quiet noises. She’s got her wives on either side of her and she’s content to have her jacket stolen by her child, amused by how far River will go to burrow until she’s unseen. She runs her claws through blonde hair and thinks. 

Glimmer whispers, “Catra?”

“I’m going to bed, babe. Don’t worry about me.”

“It’s not that.” Glimmer is smiling in the dark. “It crossed your mind though, didn’t it? River having a new friend.”

Catra huffed and won’t say it. Her wife kisses her nose playfully, careful not to upset the ones sleeping around them. Catra lets her. 

“Whatever happens, happens.” She mumbles. “I’d rather not step in when it looks like they only just kissed _yesterday._ At least we were married.”

Glimmer winces, “Yeah. We’ll see what happens.”

Adora says, “You two whisper really loudly.”

“Shut up.”

Mermistsa groans from somewhere nearby and a pillow hits them. Catra doesn’t take it personally and throws her own retaliation. It ends up getting serious when the others wake up and ice pillows and teleporting blankets become a hazard. River gives her a horrified look and Catra laughs, scooping up her child and dodging She-ra. 

“Oh hey!” Entrapta yells from across the room, “there’s a cupcake on the wall!”

“Better than popsicles.” Catra teases. “I’d say it’s an improvement.”

Glimmer laughs and shoves a cupcake right in her face.


	31. Chapter 31

.

.

Adora kept the lantern low. 

The halls of Brightmoon cast purple shadows and blue glows along the walls. The curtains of the windows brushed her ankles. Her nightgown left her chilly. Her hair pressed against her back, invisible spiders giving her goosebumps. She squashed unpleasant thoughts with a swat of her hand. 

When she found the room she was looking for, she smiled. 

Melog was curled up in front of it, tail curling back and forth on the floor. Blue eyes watched her happily. Adora bent down to give a few pets. 

“She beat me to it, huh?” The blonde glances up at the door. The lantern floated up to illuminate the door handle. Melog was positioned on the floor in just a way that anyone trying to sneak in would trip and meet an untimely doom. 

She gives a quick kiss to the top of Melog’s head, the cat obligingly rolling over for her to let her in. She leaves the lantern behind. The door closes and she’s blinking to adjust to the dark. It’s not hard to navigate. She’s been visiting this room every day. 

She takes three stops forward and Catra says, “Watch your feet.”

“Huh?” She says eloquently, glancing down. 

“Shush.” Her wife’s voice drops low. “Don’t step on anything.”

Toys. Adora smiles in amusement and moves around the objects. “Thanks.”

“Mn.”

The bed is occupied. Adora idly readjusts the covers, mindful of Glimmer’s wings draping over the edge and fanning out onto the floor. She huffs, bending over to press a kiss to her wife’s head. Catra watches her. 

“Nightmare?” Adora guesses, gaze turning to the child in Glimmer’s arms.

“Yeah.”

Adora lets herself pause. She takes it in. The childish bedroom, the toys on the floor, her wives curled around their daughter. She inhales, her hand already reaching for Catra’s. 

“You okay?” She asks, because she  _ knows.  _

Catra doesn’t answer. Her hand pulls her in until Adora is pressed to the side of the bed. Catra ducks her head until it’s hidden against Adora’s abdomen. It’s an awkward angle, but Adora lets her, her fingers gently caressing through her mane. 

“You’re doing great.” Adora whispers. The need to comfort above all else won out over being quiet. “With her, I mean. I’m proud of you.”

“Mn.” An arm looping around her waist, drawing her in tighter. “You shouldn’t be.”

Adora snorts in amusement, “Too late for that.”

“I don’t-” Catra sighs, drawing away. “Nevermind.”

That wasn’t good. Adora followed her, crouching down until her chin rested on the blankets. Catra hadn’t turned away, but her gaze was on her fingers. Even in the dark Adora could see her frown. 

“Talk to me.” Adora said. “Something’s bugging you.”

“I’m not  _ bugged.”  _ Catra grumbled. “I’m just- I want to say something but it’s not going to sound right.”

“Okay?” She waits but Catra doesn’t speak. “Do you want me to talk first?”

Catra shoots her a wary look, “About what?”

She doesn’t know, but she doesn’t want the conversation to end there. She purses her lips and says, “Trees?”

“Really?” Catra rolls onto her back so she’s not facing Adora, “Get out.”

“Aw c’mon.” Adora pauses. Let’s it hold for three seconds. “I’m just  _ branching  _ out here.”

Catra shoots her a warning look so severe she has to lean back lest she catch fire. Adora chuckles, covering her mouth with her palm to keep quiet. Her wife huffs. 

“You’re not gonna let it go, are you?” Catra murmurs.

That sobers Adora up, “I’ll let it go if you want me to. I won’t forget about it.”

“Course you won’t.” It’s said fondly and with a smidge of exasperation. Wearily, Catra runs a hand over her face. “It’s not that serious. It’s just something I thought about.”

“Tell me.” 

Catra’s arms are sneaking out of the blankets to twine with hers. She lets herself be drawn in, wiggling under the covers until she’s pulled close to her wife.  _ Catra hug  _ she thinks dreamily and nuzzles into her neck. 

Catra sighs, her breath brushing the top of her head, “Do you remember when we were kids? You’d climb up to my bunk and invade my-”

“It was cuddling.”

“ _ Invade  _ my bed.” Her wife huffs and Adora can hear her smile. “You always knew when I was upset.”

Adora tries not to preen, “It’s my special ability.”

“Not turning into an eight foot tall princess?”

  
“That’s my side job.”

Catra muffles her snickers into her hair, “Shut up. I’m trying to be serious.”

“Sorry.” Adora hums into Catra’s shirt, letting her fingers play with the threads, “Are you gonna talk?”

Catra is silent. It’s an answer, one that has Adora exhaling. It was more serious then it appeared if Catra was struggling this badly. She lets them stew in the quiet, waiting patiently while enjoying being held. 

“I’m sorry.”

“What for?”

Catra sounds hoarse when she says, “I won’t be able to choose you.”

Adora blinks at Catra’s shirt. She cranes her head up, mindful not to bump her wife’s chin. Mismatched eyes look down at her softly, “What does that mean?”

“I just-” Catra closes her eyes. “That came out wrong. It doesn’t sound right. It’s the truth?”

“You lost me.”

“Yeah.” Catra grumbled. “This is weird.”

Adora waits, slightly unsettled. Catra’s claws are running gently down her back, tracing patterns and shapes. It sends tingles down Adora’s spine. 

“Do you remember-”

“Is this nostalgia hour?” Adora asks, amused. 

Catra hisses quietly, “Let me finish.” Her wife pauses to recollect her thoughts. “You made a lot of promises to me. During the war. Do you remember them all?”

“Yes.” Adora answers. She can see them every time she closes her eyes. It’s hard to forget those turning points in her life. “Did you?”

“No.” Her arms curled tighter around Adora. “...I kinda wish I did.”

That hurt a little. “Why?”

“Because-” Catra starts too strongly and Adora gently shushes her. Her wife continues, “because I don’t think I can hold up my promises anymore.”   
  


Adora frowns, “What makes you say that?”

“I promised to be there for you.” Catra whispers. “It was always you. That’s all I had on my mind. But, but then I fell in love, and then I fell in love  _ again,  _ and now…”

“And now?” Adora echoes. 

The claws press against her, not tight enough to hurt, but enough that Adora feels the slight tremble in Catra’s shoulder. She offers a comforting kiss to her neck. Hears her wife shakily exhale. 

“Now you’re part of something.” Catra whispers. “Now I just-”

Adora finds her vision covered by pink. She turns her head to the wing, the feathers gently brushing over them like a second blanket. Catra’s breath releases, the tension melting off her. 

“How much did you hear, birdie?”

“Enough.” Glimmer’s drowsy voice barely reaches Adora with how quiet she has to be. “Are you okay?”

Catra doesn’t answer. The wing curls around them tighter. Adora loved the feeling so much she smiles, leaning forward to press a kiss to Catra’s jaw. 

“Both of you.” Catra murmurs. “This, this goes for both of you. I love you two. I’d do anything to keep you safe, but-”

She turns her head to the side. Adora follows the movement and understands. Her daughter is curled into Glimmer’s arms. In the time they’d had her, she’d already grown an inch. It wasn’t a major difference. River was still small. But she was  _ growing  _ and that meant she was one day going to  _ grow up. _

“If it came down to it.” Catra breathed. “I don’t know who I’d protect.”

“River.” Glimmer says, as if it’s as easy as the sun and moon. She winces, “Sorry that- I didn’t mean to make it insensitive. I just thought about it and-”

“Same.” Catra murmured. “I’m the same. I thought, what if I had to choose, my wives or my daughter? And I thought, my very first thought was…”

Adora feels the realization rattle her, “That you were going to have to break your promise.” Because Catra wouldn’t say it, but it’s what she felt. What  _ she  _ felt, Adora knows. She was the same. 

“I’d trust you two to handle yourselves.” She says, mediating how heavy the air had gotten. “River doesn’t know magic. She’s not She-Ra and she doesn’t have claws. She’s…”

Catra roughly nods, “Yeah. That.”

_ Defenseless.  _ Adora grimaced and tried not to think about what would have happened if Catra hadn’t found their daughter in the woods that night. There’s many ugly scenarios. Adora leans forward and presses a tender kiss to Catra’s lips. Her wife looks surprised and wary. 

“You’re not upset?”

“Why would I be?” Adora smiled. “I’m She-Ra. Glimmer can teleport and you’re  _ strong.  _ We’re warriors.”

Catra looks a little ill when she says, “Even if I have to leave you behind?”

“That’s…” Adora chews her words carefully, “I know  _ why  _ you would now. I’m glad.”

“Only you.” Catra huffs in disbelief. “Only you would be  _ glad  _ to be left behind.”

“Parenting.” Glimmer yawns, resting her forehead against Glimmer’s shoulder. “Just wait till she’s a teenager-”

“Oh  _ stars.”  _ Catra choked, ears flat against her head. “She’s going to hate me.”

Adora can’t help the baffled giggle, “What? Catra, she loves you.”

“Yeah,  _ now.  _ Wait till she grows up and realizes that I’m terrible at this.” Catra leans her head against the pillows, “Ugh we’re gonna end up fighting over stupid stuff like toothpaste.”

Now Glimmer was laughing too, muffling them under her hands, “I’m just imagining- you’re prying a teenager out of bed yelling to  _ go brush your teeth  _ or something-”

Catra made an affronted noise, “I wouldn’t  _ yell-” _

“Shhh.” Adora smiles. “You’ll wake her up.”

“Domestic cat.” Glimmer whispers like it’s the most scandalous secret. Adora has to fight down the laugh and manages a  _ snrrk  _ while Catra turns her lethal glare to the winged princess. 

“If there wasn’t a child between us-” She threatened. 

“Ohhh?” Glimmer smirked. “What would you do?”

Catra boldly leaned forward and licked her wife’s face. Glimmer gave a startled shriek, piercing and shattering the quiet. Adora shook her head. 

“Catra, that was so gross-”

  
“I’ve licked you before you-”

“Girls.” Adora sighs. “You woke her up.”

A pair of startled blue eyes peered up over the covers. Adora took pity on her and reached over her wife, ushering her child into her arms and scooping her away. Glimmer looks only a little offended at being robbed. 

“That’s fair.” Her wife grumbles. 

“Sorry, kiddo.” Catra murmurs. “Get some sleep.”

From the way River was curling up, Adora imagines she was already halfway there. She presses a kiss to the top of her head, getting comfortable. A flash of pink in the room and Glimmer is standing, offering a hand to Catra. 

“C’mon.” Her wife smiles. “Stand up.”

“I’m not getting out of bed are you crazy-”

“You big baby just-”

Adora kept her voice low, “If you two wake her up again, I’m banning you from this room.”

Her wives grimace but they’re shooting playful looks at each other. It makes Adora’s heart flutter, makes her watch as Catra reluctantly lets herself be dragged out of bed. She can feel how smitten her heart is when Glimmer takes Catra’s hands in her own. 

“Ever danced in the moonlight with a princess?” Glimmer wiggles her eyebrows. 

“At 2 AM?” Catra gives her a frosty look, “Can’t say it ever crossed my mind.”

Adora stage whispers, “That’s not how you flirt.”

Glimmer giggles. Catra rolls her eyes but she’s smiling. She's looping her arms around Glimmer's neck and her wife is beaming, swaying them as she steps close to tilt her head for a kiss. Adora can hear Catra purring from here. 

"I love you." Glimmer whispers into the darkness. 

Catra makes a noise, her tail flicking back and forth. “Did you do this to make me feel better?”

“Maybe I just wanted to dance with-”

“Glim.”

Glimmer hummed, “I’m not that easy. You’ll have to try harder for the secrets of my heart.”

“That’s so sappy.” Catra complains, but her voice stays sultry when she says, “I can read you like a book. Are you jealous you woke up and Adora was in my arms?”

“Maybe I was jealous Adora got to kiss you.” Glimmer smoothly replied. 

“That,” Catra breathed, “I can fix.”

“Now  _ I’m  _ jealous.” Adora comments. She doesn’t mean it, giggling when Catra dips Glimmer and kisses the princess. Her wings flutter happily. It’s cute. 

Catra straightens, “I love you too, but I’m tired.”

Glimmer laughs, “Old age already hitting you?”

“Don’t even joke about that. Adora already has grey hairs.”

Adora glares, “I do not.”

Glimmer makes her way back to the bed, bending down to kiss the top of Adora’s head, “She doesn’t.”

“You’re just saying that-”

“Catra.” Adora smiled. “Come to bed already.”

Her wife makes a show of rolling her eyes, but her smile is wide in the dark. She looks better than earlier. Less haunted. The freedom of that happiness sends sparks through Adora’s chest. She reaches out pleadingly, more than anything wanting to hold her wife again. 

It’s Catra’s turn to take the hand offered to her and let herself be pulled to bed. 

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> I decided to make a separate story for River's adventures if you wanna see more of the sunshine child


	32. Chapter 32

.

.

Glimmer couldn’t remember her coronation. 

A lot of it had been a haze. The war blurred together into dreadful day after day, each one marked a tearful  _ she’s not here.  _ She remembers Adora was there. She remembers the other princesses. Frosta saying something. Everything else is lost under a film of grief. 

And then her dad came back, and she gave back the crown to go on a year long adventure into space. She came back in love and fell harder than ever. She grew up hand in hand, a ring on each one. She stares at her wedding bands and thinks  _ I’m here again.  _

There’s a knock at the door. 

“Come in.” She calls. Her voice sounds hoarse. 

Her mother steps in. The action is astoundingly tender, from the way she closes the door behind her to the way she carries herself across the room. Glimmer’s heart is hammering in her chest when she feels willowy arms embrace her. 

“Shhh.” Her mother soothes. “I’m right here.”

Glimmer sniffles, “I shouldn’t be crying.”

“I cried at mine.” Her mother smiles at her.

“I cried at  _ both  _ of mine.” She tells her wetly. 

Angella’s smile fades. Her hand reaches up and wipes at her daughter's tears. Glimmer is reminded of standing alone in this room, just herself and her shadow until someone came to fetch her. What she thought she lost is right in front of her and it makes her cry harder. 

“Oh, my Glimmer.” Her mom huffs, amusement and worry coloring her face. “I couldn’t be more proud.”

“You’re making it worse.” She accuses without heat. She knew she was going to cry today. At least it was with her mom and not in front of the entire kingdom. She buries her head into her mother's shoulder and forgets. Throws away all the memories of her last coronation. This,  _ this  _ is what she dreamed of when she was little. 

“You can take a few more minutes.” Her mother suggests. 

Glimmer rubs her eyes, “I think I’ve waited long enough.”

Angella smiles. She presses a kiss to the top of her head. “I’m so  _ proud  _ of you.”

Glimmer cried. She stood in her mother’s arms for as long as she could. The world and all of its weight was gone from her mind. There was no war. Her chest wasn’t hurting. She cried so hard she laughed. 

“Can we,” She hiccups, “can we have tea afterwards? Something really dumb.”

Her mother huffed, “I don’t recall my tea ever being  _ dumb.  _ But yes. I’d be delighted to have tea with you.” She pauses to incline her head, eyes warm. “Your majesty.”

Her mother leaves to let her clean up. Which is, she stops crying and fixes what tears have messed up on her face. A guard is polite enough to inform her she still has an  _ hour  _ until it takes place. She’s going to go crazy.

“If anyone asks, I was kidnapped.” She tells him.

The guard stares at her in horror as she escapes through the door. 

She makes it three feet before running head first into something that’s not even there. Arms wrap around her waist and draw her against it. She doesn’t struggle. It’s a familiar and welcome hold.

Catra’s voice brushes her ear, “Caught ya.”

“I wasn’t running away.” She makes a point to snuggle into her wife. 

“I know.”

“So now what?” Glimmer hates not being able to see her. “Take me back to my room?”

There’s a creak from the door and the guard looks out fearfully. Glimmer feels embarrassment crawl up her neck. She’s standing in the hallway making cooing noises at nothing. Catra huffs a laugh.

“Oh I don’t know.” She drawls. “Raid the buffet, maybe drop a spider on Mermista, kidnap the new Queen-”

“You heard that?”

Catra snorts, “As if I’d leave you alone.”

That’s unfair. It’s tender and cute and she’s still not visible. Frustrated, Glimmer grabs one of the arms around her and brings it up to her face. The claws rest in her palm and she presses kisses to each one. 

“Okay.” Catra choked out. “You’re mine.”

Glimmer bursts out into giggles as she’s swept off her feet. She barely hears the guard make a strangled noise over it. She must make a ridiculous sight, until she hears Catra murmur something and the shimmering translucent outline of her wife is carrying her. Meloh purrs by her feet. 

Glimmer relishes the invisibility, “My hero.”

“Brightmoon is haunted by queen snatching ghosts.” Catra tells her. “I had nothing to do with this.”

“Oh of course.”

Catra carries her out of Brightmoon. For a second, she worries her wife might actually fall through with kidnapping her from her own coronation. The Whispering Woods was an odd place to spend her time until then. 

“Where are we going?”

“Getting some fresh air.” She pauses to set her down on her feet. “And you looked like you were going crazy.”

“Thanks.” 

“Sure.”

“I mean it.” Glimmer rises on her toes to kiss her wife’s cheek. “Thank you, Catra.”

“Yeah, yeah.” She huffs, a smile in her voice. She doesn’t say anything as she leads Glimmer deeper into the woods. Melog brushes her head against Glimmer’s hip. She happily obliges with a few head pats. 

“Do you ever think about how-” Catra starts off before abruptly stopping. 

“About what?”

“It’s- not today, sparkles. It’s your day.” 

That sounded terrible. Glimmer bumps her elbow to Catra’s. Her wife does it back. The childish war ends when she loops her arms with hers. 

“Tell me.”

Catra exhales, “Ever think about how you got here? About how, maybe, you never thought you’d make it this far?”

Glimmer doesn’t know what to say. The forest around them flutters and sings with birdsong. It’s bright, a reflection of colors off every mushroom and plant. She can hear a creek nearby. It’s peaceful. 

“I guess I never thought I’d have a second coronation.” Glimmer says tentatively. “I never thought I’d make it off Horde Prime’s ship. I didn’t think I’d ever have a kid either.”

Catra leans over to press her lips to her head and said, “I never thought I’d live this long.”

Glimmer almost trips.   
  


“Catra-”

“I’ve thought about it.” Her wife continues smoothly. “And I know I wasn’t okay during the war. I felt sick. The war ended and I had to, to figure out that I was going to live for a very long time.”

“I thought it when I first kissed you.” Catra murmurs. “I thought about it when Adora proposed. When I found River, finding your mom, becoming  _ something  _ in this world.”

Glimmer doesn’t know if the ache in her chest is happiness or her heart breaking. She presses close to her wife, “You’re something to me.”

“I know.” She can practically hear Catra rolling her eyes. “Don’t I know it. I feel like I’ve been force fed love over the years.”

“Is that a bad thing?”

Catra’s voice is hoarse when she says, “Not at all.”

They stay like that. Glimmer with her head against Catra’s collar and Catra nuzzling her hair. Her wings fold around them, careful not to upset the ornaments on them. The coronation outfit was starting to feel stiff. 

“I love you.” She blurts, startling herself. She forges on, her heart hammering sideways and upside down and she really couldn’t tell anymore. “I love you.”

Catra nods. There’s a soft whisper, an oath and a promise. Glimmer lets it ring in her ears long after Catra guides her back to Brightmoon. They make it to her room. The guard at the door is visibly sweating. She opens the door and someone is in her chair. 

Adora looks over at them dryly, “I see how it is.”

“Don’t sulk.” Catra chides, grinning with all teeth. She strides across the room to bump her head against the blonde’s. “Are you jealous we were making out?”

“You weren’t.” Adora mirrors the smirk. “Her make up isn’t messed up.”

Catra’s ears go flat, “Since when did you become a detective?”

“Since my wives went missing twenty minutes ago.”

Glimmer laughs, “Sorry babe. I got nervous.”

Blue eyes soften. Adora is holding a hand out for her and Glimmer follows it. It draws her into a strong embrace. She doesn’t care about ornaments. She lets her wings fan out and draw them in, tightly and warmly. 

“It’s not like last time.” Adora whispers soothingly. “It’s better.”

“Much better.” Glimmer confirms tremulously. “I’m not grieving for starters.”

“No war.” Adora adds.

Catra says, “It’s because I’m here, obviously.”

That makes Glimmer giggle, “What, it went bad last time because you weren’t here?”

“Mhm.”

Adora rolls her eyes. Catra retaliates by licking her ear and the blonde  _ yelps.  _

“Seriously?”

Catra just snickers in response. Glimmer’s heart melts at her girls, their dorky grins and gentle hands. She can’t figure out her heart but she knows it’s screaming happily. 

“Where’s my daughter?” She asks.

Catra makes an indignant noise, “Uh, first of all-”

Adora says, “She’s with Angella.”

“- _ your  _ daughter?”

Glimmer ignores her, leaning forward to press a kiss to Adora’s nose, “I could stay in your arms for years.”

Her wife looks amused, “You already do that.”

  
“Yeah but I want to do it everyday.” Her voice drops low. “Tomorrow, the day after, next week, next year-”

She quiets. Her wives are staring at her. It’s the same heartfelt looks she received at her wedding. The same loving gazes that fell on her every night. It steals her breath and she surges forward, finding Catra’s lips.

“Keep talking like that,” Catra murmurs, “and I’ll have to keep you.”

“ _ Now  _ I’m jealous.” Adora jokes, eyes twinkling. 

Glimmer laughs. She tries to kiss Adora but she’s shaking with giggles and it makes Adora grin, abandoning her lips to press kisses over her face. There’s a knock at the door and a  _ it’s time.  _ Her heart leaps in new ways and none of them are bad. 

“Together.” She whispers. “I want to do this together.”

“Of course.” Adora promises, sincerity and love. “Right beside you.”

She looks at Catra. Her wife’s words still ring in her ears and reflect in mismatched eyes. Catra smiles, something secretive in it. Wistful, longing, love, content,  _ earnest.  _

“I’m not going anywhere.” Catra says. 

Glimmer smiles. 

.

.

Queen Glimmer sits in her garden (it’s hers now, hers again) and watches the stars. Her coronation robe is only half on her, the cloak and jewelry abandoned in her room after the ceremony. Catra is curled into her lap, head nestled onto her thighs and purring in her sleep. Glimmer is careful not to move her legs. Melog is underneath the bench and she’d hate to step on her. 

Adora leans her head on her shoulder, “Feel different?”

Glimmer watches the clouds part for the moon, “No.”

“Good.” Adora kisses the bare skin of her neck, “I didn't want you to be unhappy.”

“I couldn’t be.” She hesitates over her words. They don’t sound right. “I mean, yeah I’m not  _ great  _ I’m still  _ thinking _ -”

“About before.”

She deflates. “Yeah.”

Adora hums. Her wife runs her thumb along Glimmer’s arm, soothing caresses that leave goosebumps. Glimmer exhales. The moonlight makes Adora look pretty, in the  _ I’m the incarnation of an ancient princess that glows  _ kinda way. It’s indescribable. 

“It’s okay to think about it.” Adora whispers. “It’s okay to forget too. I think we’re all learning how to do that.”

“Even you?” Glimmer jests softly.

Adora’s gaze is far away, “...yeah.”

She doesn’t like that look. It’s too sad for her tastes. She tastes something different as she leans forward to take her blonde’s lips. Adora hums happily, eyes half lidded and gleaming. 

“You’re too good for me.” She says.

Glimmer snorts, “I should be saying that.”

“Shut up.” Catra complains sleepily into her legs. “Seriously, moping time over. Nap time.”

“Catra, it’s midnight.”

“Nap time.”

Glimmer laughs, running her fingers through her wife’s hair. Catra makes a  _ mmm  _ noise, ear flicking. They sit in content silence. The rustling of the hedges, the quiet of the garden, the light of the moon. Glimmer only ever dreamed of this peace. 

“Tomorrow is another day.” She whispers. 

“One of many.” Adora corrects her gently.

“One of many.” Catra echoes. 

_ Many days ahead  _ drums in Glimmer’s head. It feels fuzzy and warm. Her heart is beating a song that she doesn’t know the lyrics too. She finds it stuck in her head anyway. She finds she’s happy with this.  _ Content.  _

_ I’m here to stay,  _ Catra’s oath rings sweetly,  _ I’m here forever.  _

Adora stretches her arms above her head, “Onto the next adventure, girls?”

  
“Going to bed?” Glimmer.

“Not moving at all?” Catra.

Adora gifts them a fond yet exasperated smile, “I can’t win with those options.”

Catra huffs, “What are you trying to win?”

“Cuddling with my wives?”

“We’re already doing that.”

“Some people like beds.”

“Can’t relate.”

Glimmer chokes on a laugh, listening to her wives bicker. They playfully nudge each other, not forceful enough to upset their positions. She lets her wings circle them, draws them in and covers everything but the moonlight. 

“There.” She says smugly. “Beds are made out of feathers. We all win.”

Adora rolls her eyes but there’s a smile in her words, “Not what I meant.”

“I like it.” Catra curls deeper into her lap. “Goodnight.”

Glimmer playfully echoes it and presses a kiss to Catra’s temple. Adora sighs something beside her but leans on her shoulder, defeat dripping off her. Glimmer loves the feel of it, Catra in her arms and Adora pressed beside her. She loves it so much. 

“Goodnight.” She whispers again, softer. 

Adora mutters something about  _ really in the garden  _ but she’s settling down. Blonde hair tickles her elbow. A palm with claws is over her knee, it’s presence gentle and comforting. Her eyes are heavy and tug her down, drawing her into moonlight and kisses and stars. 

It follows her into her dreams and she never lets it go. 

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> thank you everyone for reading and supporting Soulbound! <3 
> 
> You can go check out my new glitradora fic here: https://archiveofourown.org/works/25345723/chapters/61454746


End file.
